He Is Mine
by McDiggin'It
Summary: Morgana had never noticed Merlin before. Of course she knows him, and knows that he at least finds her attractive, but she hadn't looked at him twice before... until someone else looked twice. MERGANA! Girls fighting over Merlin ;)
1. Chapter 1

Title: He Is Mine

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Summary: Morgana had never noticed Merlin before. Of course she knows him, and knows that he at least finds her attractive, but she hadn't looked at him twice before... until someone _else_ looked twice. MERGANA! Royals fighting over Merlin ;)

...

A/N: I quite like the thought of a jealous and possessive Morgana. So I decided to write this. It is a multi chapter fic. Just a heads up, this fic will NOT follow the original Merlin series plot. It has a plot of its own. So, a few things you'll need to keep in mind is that Merlin has no destiny to unite Albion or whatever, and Morgana has no future of turning evil. They'll both still have magic, but that will be mentioned in the later chapters. Hope you all like it!

-McDiggin'It

...

Chapter One:

…

It's a particularly cold winter day, and the whole of Camelot spends it indoors, away from the biting wind. But the castle is buzzing with preparations for the King of Ergyng, arriving today to discuss a possible alliance with Camelot.

Morgana stares out from her window, watching the procession of carts and a single luxurious chariot being pulled along by horses. King Athrwys himself rides ahead of the cavalcade on a beautiful white horse, his chin held high and his body wrapped in a plush, animal fur coat. Word of the Kingdom of Ergyng had reached Camelot weeks ago, about King Athrwys' rather… unique ways of ruling. He employs no servants, choosing to employ only what they refer to as 'helpers'. Their kingdom also ignores such traditions as marriage arrangements. Nobles may choose to be betrothed to anyone of their liking, whether it be a noble or a peasant. It's strange and unfamiliar to hear of such a thing being allowed in another kingdom.

She has to admit, the thought had never really crossed her mind. She grew up in a life of luxury where everything was handed to her on a silver platter… but the thought of _wanting_ to marry a peasant had never crossed her mind. It seems silly… absurd even. The Ward of Camelot's King is pulled from her musings by her maid, Guinevere, asking if she would like to start preparing for tonights welcome feast. Morgana nods to her maid, glancing once more out her window as the party from Ergyng halts in front of the castle. She looks at the chariot once more before hurrying to get ready.

She's excited to see what these people from Ergyng are like. From her window, she could tell that the King himself is probably around the same age as Uther, well into their early fifties or so. She wonders if the King of Ergyng will like seeing servants around the castle. She doubts it. And she wonders who was in the luxurious chariot.

…

Due to certain circumstances (she couldn't decide on what to wear), Morgana arrives late to the feast. She missed the introductions, but luckily missed Uther's long, rehearsed welcome speech as well.

Uther quirks an eyebrow at her as she makes her entrance through the front doors of the Great Hall, putting on her best smile as everyone turns their eyes towards her. She catches a glimpse of the King of Ergyng sitting on Uther's left, and beside him, sat a girl about the same age as her, with long blonde locks that cascades down her back like a golden waterfall, hazel eyes, and a quirky smile.

She must've been the one who rode in the chariot, Morgana thinks silently. She looks to Uther when he rises from his seat and flashes one of his false-proud smiles. "King Athrwys, I'd like for you to meet my lovely Ward, the Lady Morgana."

King Athrwys rises from his seat as well, and smiles kindly at her. He has the same eyes as the girl sitting beside him, but not the same hair color. His hair was a dark brown with flecks of grey on the sides. He takes her hand, kissing the back of it and bows slightly. "It is a great pleasure to meet you, Lady Morgana." he says with a kind voice. He almost reminds her of her father. Morgana curtsies, bowing her head respectfully.

"The pleasure is mine, Your Grace."

He lets go of her hand, then turns towards the girl still sitting in her chair beside him. "And may I introduce you to my daughter, Princess Ophelia."

The blonde girl rises from her seat, smiling all too widely towards Morgana. "A pleasure." she says sweetly and curtsies.

Morgana returns the respect, and smiles politely. She's not sure what it is, but theres something… off about the blonde girl and the way she's smiling. Like she knows some huge secret that no one else does. "It's great to meet you, Princess." Morgana bows her head in respect before greeting Uther with a short, awkward hug, and a nod towards Arthur, before she finally takes her seat beside the Prince.

The feast continues, stories are exchanged between the two Kings, laughter could be heard from the other side of the hall as nobles and Knights drink their weights in wine. The only people standing around would be the servants, hurrying around to fill goblets with wine, and empty platters with food.

Morgana isn't very hungry, but she eats enough to keep her wine down. Tonight would not be the night for her to be a lightweight because she hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. The Kings ward finds her eyes straying from the other half drunk passerby's, and resting on the Princess Ophelia. She has to admit, the girl is absolutely beautiful… but theres something about her that Morgana can't quite put her finger on. She studies the blonde subtly, watching her stare around the room at different people, looking utterly bored. Morgana can't say she really blames her. It is quite boring after all.

There's a loud crash, followed by a thud, and everyone at their table turn their heads towards the sound to find Merlin, lying face first in a platter of food.

Arthur groans loudly, "Merlin, you idiot!" he hisses.

Merlin pulls his face out of the food and looks up at the Prince with a sheepish grin. "I tripped, Sire."

"I can see that." Arthur snaps, taking a table cloth and throwing it at the manservant. "Clean that up and go get some more wine for this table."

Merlin rolls his eyes, complaining under his breath as he gets up, gathers the platter of food in his arms, and leaves immediately.

Morgana glances at King Athrwys, who frowns at Arthur and the way he had spoken to Merlin. She also feels a pang of sympathy for the poor manservant. He was such a clumsy boy with his large ears, contagious smile, and bumbling behavior. And Arthur treats him like a bloody slave. With that thought in mind, she nudges Arthur's foot with her own, and the Prince immediately turns his attention to her. "Can you be any more of a prat to that poor boy?" She hisses softly to him.

Arthur scoffs at her. "First of all, he's Merlin. He doesn't even listen to a word I say. Second, he's not a boy. He's a grown man who should know how to carry a platter of food to a table without tripping over his own feet."

"Still talking about me, Sire?" Merlin's voice chimes in before Morgana could call Arthur an idiot. Merlin chuckles as he lifts up the jug of wine.

Arthur rolls his eyes. "You're not that important, Merlin."

Merlin resists the urge to laugh as he fills up Morgana's goblet first, offering a smile to her as he pulls away and fills Arthur's goblet as well. There's a yelp from Arthur when Morgana kicks his foot again, causing Merlin to turn a little too quickly, and accidentally hit Arthur in the head with the jug.

"MERLIN!" Arthur shouts at the manservant. Before Arthur could continue, or Uther could scold the manservant for being so clumsy and careless, a giggle breaks through the hall. All eyes at their table turns towards the sound, coming from Princess Ophelia. It's the first time she's actually laughed.

Morgana's eyebrows shoot up on her forehead upon seeing the Princess stare up at Merlin with a very suggestive look. When Morgana turns her eyes towards the manservant, she finds him staring at the Princess Ophelia with wide eyes, his mouth hanging open in awe of the girls obvious beauty.

The King's ward immediately doesn't like the way he's looking at the Princess, and she shakes her head to clear her thoughts before "accidentally" nudging Merlin in the hip.

The manservant glances at her for a short moment before looking back towards the Princess.

"Merlin, was it?" Princess Ophelia asks so softly, Morgana was sure almost nobody heard it. But then Merlin is nodding his head towards the blonde.

"Yes, your grace." Merlin bows his head, and Morgana sees his cheeks turn red before he looks back up and smiles at the Princess. "Would you like some more wine?" Merlin asks suddenly.

Morgana bites her lip as Ophelia nods immediately. "Yes, please… if that's okay with you."

Merlin stares for a moment before moving around the table to stand a little too close to the Princess of Ergyng as he pours her wine. When he's done, he moves to go back to his place by a pillar, but the Princess Ophelia stops him with a hand on his. "You have a little something on your cheek." She says with a giggle.

Morgana's skin prickles at the sugary look the Princess gives the manservant. But she says and does nothing as Princess Ophelia rises from her seat, taking her napkin, licking a corner, and then wiping a tiny smudge on Merlin's cheek.

Everyone in the room gapes in shock at the interaction between the Princess of Ergyng and a manservant. It is quite odd after all.

"There." Ophelia smiles and stares into Merlin's deep blue eyes. "All clean."

Merlin's jaw is practically on the floor as he stares, only getting jarred from his daze by Athrwys chuckling softly. "Errr," Merlin blushes a deep red as he looks at Athrwys, then at Uther, to Arthur, to Morgana, and then back to the Princess still smiling at him. "Thank you, your grace... you didn't have to do that for me."

"I know." she whispers, her eyes holding an almost hungry look as Merlin stares. "I wanted to."

Merlin could only nod dumbly as he smiles at her.

"And thank you for the wine, Merlin." Ophelia says sweetly as she lays her hand on his chest and gently caresses him.

"It's- it's- I mean, that is- it's no problem, your grace." Merlin stutters.

"Please, call me Ophelia." The Princess smiles even wider as she draws a finger up the side of his neck and touches his jaw.

Merlin gapes at her then looks at the King of Ergyng. He's surprised to find that instead of a murderous look on the King's face, he merely looks amused. He shrugs at Merlin, "She does whatever she wants."

Merlin then blushes and glances at the girl before bowing his head and hurrying away. Ophelia continues to follow the manservant around with her eyes.

Morgana decides that she really doesn't like this Princess Ophelia… and she also doesn't like the way Merlin was looking at the girl. That look used to belong to her.

…

When the feast is over, Morgana makes her way up to her chambers, accompanied by Gwen. She's a little dizzy from the wine, but she's wide awake. Turning to Gwen, she offers a smile. "Gwen, could you be a dear and run to Gaius' chambers for my sleeping draught."

"Of course, Milady." Gwen says with a slight bow before turning.

Morgana stops her, "Oh, have him send Merlin with the draught, and then you may have the rest of the evening to yourself. I'm sure I can change on my own for tonight."

Gwen nods with a smile, "Okay, thank you Milady. Have a good night."

"You too." Morgana smiles before continuing up to her chambers by herself.

She changes quickly before pacing her room as she waits for the manservant. She's not sure why, but she suddenly has the strong urge to see him. It's an odd feeling for her.

When the knock finally comes, she has to calm herself before slowly pulling the door open, leaning her head against the wooden frame and smiling up at the tall manservant.

"Good evening, Milady." He bows his head and smiles widely at her.

Her stomach lurchs at the look he gives her. His eyes squinting as they subtly slide from her head to her toes and back up again. She wonders if he always does that, or if it's new. Shaking her thoughts away, she swings the door open and takes a step back. "Come in." She says softly.

Merlin does as he's told and stands awkwardly by the door when she closes it behind him. "Ermm, here you go." He hands her the sleeping draught and smiles again.

He really does have the most contagious smile, for she finds herself smiling again too. "Thank you, Merlin."

He nods, "You're welcome, Milady... was there anything else you needed?"

Morgana stares at him and slowly shakes her head, "No... did you have a good time at the feast?"

Merlin pauses, not sure of how to answer that. He could hardly describe running around pouring wine for a bunch of people as 'a good time', but he nods anyway. "Yes, Milady."

Morgana nods, smiling at him. "And what did you think of King Athrwys and his daughter?" She pauses, then adds in, "She's beautiful, isn't she?"

"Milady?" Merlin asks confusedly.

"Princess Ophelia... do you... do you think she's beautiful?" She finds herself dreading his answer.

Merlin scratches the back of his head in confusion. He's not sure what this has to do with anything at all. Again, he answers anyway. Of course he thinks the Princess of Ergyng is beautiful. Her beauty even rivals Morgana's, but he's not about to tell her that. "Yes, I think she's very lovely."

Morgana bites her lip hard and forces another smile on her face. "I agree." They stare at each other silently for the next few minutes before Merlin clears his threat and looks at the door.

"Is there anything else you need before I go, Milady?"

She wants to tell him to stay with her for a little while longer, but she knows that's a bit out of line. So she shakes her head and smiles gratefully at him. "No, that's all. Thank you, Merlin."

Merlin nods, smiling adorably at her. "You're welcome, Milady." He pulls the door open and walks out, turning again and waving. "Sleep well."

She nods as she closes her door and lightly presses her forehead against it. "What am I doing?" She groans.

...

Morgana is woken up by Gwen, shaking her shoulder lightly. The dark haired girls groans as she turns over and stretches her arms over her head. "Is it morning already?" She asks tiredly.

Gwen blinks and shakes her head, "Its almost noon, Milady."

Morgana all but shoots up in bed, widening her eyes at her maid. "What?!" She glances to the window before looking at Gwen again. "Why didn't you wake me, Gwen?"

Gwen sighs and gives her a look, "I tried several times, but you slept like the dead, Milady. So I thought you needed a bit more rest."

Morgana groans as she slips out of bed. She hisses when her bare feet meet the cold stone floor, and she quickly pulls her feet back up onto the bed. "Do I have to leave my bed?" She asks the maid with a pout.

Gwen smiles, "Yes, Milady... King Uther has requested your appearance in the great hall."

"What for?"

The maid gives her a wary glance and looks towards the ground. "There is to be a discussion about you and... the Princess Ophelia sharing your chambers."

"WHAT?!" Morgana's eyes are wide in shock, her lips parted and her hands clenching into fists.

Gwen ducks her head, "I don't know the full details, but from what Merlin told me, Princess Ophelia requested it to King Uther."

"She did what?" Morgana's blood begins to boil as she glares, not necessarily at her maid, but in her general direction. "Why would she request such a thing? There are loads of chambers she could occupy!"

Gwen frowns and shakes her head, "As I've said before, Milady... I do not know the full details. I'm just conveying what I heard from Merlin."

Morgana's eyes suddenly narrow dangerously at that last part. "Merlin?..." she pauses, trying to think of how Merlin could possibly know that Ophelia requested to share her chambers. Unless... no, "How does Merlin know this?"

Gwen shrugs her shoulders, "He didn't say, but he's a reliable source, Milady."

"He's a _servant_." Morgana corrects with emphasis.

Gwen goes silent and nods slowly. "As am I..." she mutters softly.

Before Morgana could comprehend what she'd just said to Gwen, or explain that she didn't mean that in a nasty way, the maid is already disappearing into the bath chambers. Huffing tiredly, the Lady Morgana slowly prepares for the evening. She's going to fight this news about the Princess of Ergyng with Uther, but if worse comes to worst, Princess Ophelia better have a good explanation for why she wants to share her chambers.

…

A/N: Hmmmm, what is Princess Ophelia planning? And What will Morgana do about it? Stick around and find out! I'll be updating as soon as possible. I've decided to put off "Trust Me" for later. Writing two magic reveals and posting them together didn't seem like such a good idea for me. Anyway, let me know what you guys think of this fic! Also, ideas and requests are welcomed. Thanks again, guys! R&R!

-McDiggin'It


	2. Chapter 2

Title: He Is Mine

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Chapter Two:

...

When Morgana enters the Great Hall, she finds everyone already seated there. Arthur is seated next to his father, and she notices Merlin's absence. Uther looks up and immediately gives her a warning look as if to tell her not to fight him on whatever's about to be discussed. Well he's about to be severely disappointed.

"Lady Morgana," Uther flashes one of his fake smiles. "You certainly took your time."

Morgana resists the urge to roll her eyes and glances towards King Athrwys and Princess Ophelia. "Well this was most unexpected, sire." She bows her head and says, "My apologies."

Uther nods and gestures for her to come forward. She does so, glancing yet again at the Princess of Ergyng.

"It has been brought to my attention by the lovely Princess Ophelia, that her chambers are a bit too... quiet for her liking..." Uther trails off and smiles at the Princess. "She wants to share your chambers for the duration of their stay here."

Morgana's jaw unhinges and drops open as she stares at Uther. "Seriously?" She asks incredulously.

"Morgana." Uther says warningly, his eyes conveying his rapidly rising anger. "It is our job to make sure that our guests are comfortable in their stay here."

"What about _my_ comfort?" Morgana asks in exasperation.

"It is just for two weeks." Uther says through gritted teeth.

"Surely we can figure something else out, Sire." She protests.

"Princess Ophelia specifically requested to share chambers with you. She wants to bond with you." He says simply.

His ward's eye twitches in fury, "Bond?" She asks incredulously and then looks towards the Princess again. "You want to bond?"

Princess Ophelia smiles so sweetly, it could've given the whole Kingdom a toothache. "Yes... I've always wanted a sister, and I thought that this would be a perfect opportunity to finally experience something similar to having one... unless you're not okay with that." She adds innocently.

Morgana narrows her eyes, "Oh that is just bloody-"

"Morgana!" Uther interjects sternly. "My decision is final. Princess Ophelia's possessions will be moved into your chambers tonight."

Morgana fumes silently and bites her tongue. Clenching her fists, she glares openly at the Princess before turning her glare to Uther. "It looks like I don't have a choice, so I don't know why you bothered calling me here." She bows her head and backs away. "I'll take my leave now, Sire." With that, she turns and hurries from the hall.

The moment she walks through her chamber doors, she screams in anger. A crash startles her and she jumps, turning with narrowed eyes to find Merlin staring wide eyed at her light a deer caught in a crossfire. "Merlin!" She sighs heavily and grasps her chest. "You nearly gave me a heart attack."

Merlin blinks, "I believe you nearly gave me a heart attack first, Milady." He then bows and gives her a sheepish grin. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to startle you."

Morgana stares as she lowers her hands back to her sides. "What are you..." she trails off, noticing the new vanity mirror, wooden chest, and books on her table. "What are these?" She asks, though she already kind of knows the answer to that.

Merlin looks down at the wooden chest and then back up at her. "They're Princess Ophelia's things, Milady."

Morgana inhales slowly, trying to keep her anger in check. "Right." She nods, looking at the wooden chest. She then realizes something and looks curiously at Merlin. "You're moving her things?"

Merlin nods and scratches the back of his head. "Yes, Milady... Errr, she requested that I move her things for her."

"That's how you knew that she was going to move here." Merlin looks questioningly at her and she shrugs, "Gwen mentioned it earlier."

The manservant nods and looks around. "Yes... Princess Ophelia was up quite early this morning, knocking on my door to ask me to help her pack her things up."

Morgana's eyes widen at him, "She came to your room?"

Merlin nods, "Yes, Milady."

Morgana bites her lip as she narrows her eyes. _That conniving little-_

"Milady, if you don't mind, I still have to move a few things up here." Merlin says softly.

Morgana nods and takes a few steps away from the door. "Of course, Merlin." She watches silently as he bows once more before walking out of her chambers.

She spends the next few minutes, deep in thought as she stares at her door. It isn't until Gwen enters that she finally moves from the spot where she'd been standing since Merlin left.

She has her maid prepare her to go out for a ride. She needs some fresh air and some time to think and compose herself before she has to face Princess Ophelia again. She intends on finding out the real reason why the Princess wants to share her chambers with her.

...

Riding turns out to be exactly what Morgana needed to clear her head. She comes back with a smile on her face and a renewed outlook on her current situation with Princess Ophelia. That is, until she finds the Princess alone with Merlin inside her chambers, laughing about something. They don't notice her enter because they seem to be completely immersed in their conversation. But the two turn silent when Morgana clears her throat loudly in annoyance.

"What's going on?" Morgana asks sweetly, trying to keep her anger in check.

Merlin scratches his head as Princess Ophelia answers for the both of them. "I was just asking Merlin here," she begins, laying her hand on the manservants arm, "about his duties as a servant."

Morgana narrows her eyes skeptically, "Why?"

The Princess shrugs as she lets go of Merlin's arm, "As you probably know, our kingdom does not have servants... I was just curious about what a servants job entails."

Merlin looks curiously at Morgana. He's not used to see her face scrunched up like that.

Morgana nods slowly and looks around her chambers. Her things have been moved around so the Princesses things could fit. And it makes her blood boil.

Merlin feels a bit self conscious as Morgana glances at him, making Ophelia look at him as well. "Errr," he looks sheepishly between the two. "I should probably go... Arthur is probably looking for me." He moves to leave, but Ophelia suddenly grabs his arm again. He stops and looks questioningly at her.

"I'll see you tonight?"

Merlin blushes a deep red as he glances quickly at Morgana before nodding to the Princess. "Of course, your grace." He says with a bow of his head.

Ophelia huffs and glares playfully at him. "I told you to call me by my name, Merlin."

Merlin smiles and nods quickly. "Yes, your- Ophelia."

Morgana inhales deeply, trying not to say or do anything irrational. Instead, she looks at Merlin and says, "Yes, you should probably go see what Arthur needs, Merlin." Try as she might, she couldn't keep the bitterness out of her voice.

The Princess finally lets go of the manservant and smiles as Merlin bows towards her, then to the Lady Morgana, and hurriedly leaves the room.

Morgana waits a few moments before turning to the Princess. "Why are you seeing Merlin tonight?" She asks, trying hard to keep the bitterness out of her voice this time. She fails.

The Princess smiles maliciously, "Not that it's any of your business, but I invited Merlin to go for a ride with me."

"At night?" Morgana asks incredulously.

Ophelia nods with a wide smile, obviously enjoying Morgana's displeasure. "My father's guards will accompany us, of course. So you need not worry for my safety."

Morgana wanted to laugh at that. _Her safety? She thinks I'm worried about her? Well that's just hilarious!_ "Well I hope you do enjoy your ride then, your grace." she says with a perfect fake smile.

"Thank you… now is there anything else you wanted to ask me before I get changed for my night out with Merlin?"

Morgana could hear the taunting undertones in her voice. She steps in closer, holding her head high as she nods. "What exactly are you doing?"

The Princess looks questioningly at her, though her smile says she knows exactly what Morgana is referring to. "I have not the slightest idea what you're talking about, Lady Morgana."

"Moving into my chambers, getting close to Merlin? What are you doing?"

Princess Ophelia quirks an eyebrow at her, "As I've said, I've always wanted a sister—,"

"Let's not pretend like you actually like me, Princess." Morgana cuts in, her nostrils flaring at the insulting way with which the spoiled Princess speaks to her as if she were born yesterday. "And the feeling is mutual." she adds with a sneer. "We both know you have ulterior motives in this."

At that, the Princess' smile slides right off her face like candle wax over an open flame. "Fine… I asked around about Merlin, and from what I gathered, his usual night job, is to deliver you your sleeping draught. I hear you have terrible nightmares." she smirks at having known that about the Lady Morgana.

Morgana doesn't miss a beat as she returns maliciously, "That's none of your business… what does Merlin have to do with anything?"

Princess Ophelia shrugs and smiles to herself. "He's charming, sweet, and too adorable to ignore."

Morgana's jaw clenched as she glares openly. "He's a servant."

"Not to me." Ophelia says sternly. "As you probably already know, my kingdom does not have servants."

Morgana is speechless. What could she possibly say to that? Other than, "He's a royal servant."

Ophelia scoffs, "You say this as if he would rather be a servant than a future king."

"Future King?" Morgana asks confusedly. Realization dawns quickly on her and she narrows her eyes. "You're considering him as a husband?"

Princess Ophelia nods and raises a single eyebrow as if to dare her to disagree. "He's handsome, loyal, kind, polite, sweet-"

"Yes I know about these things already!" Morgana snaps. "I've known Merlin for 2 years, your grace. I don't need you to tell me what I already know." She turns to go to her changing screen.

Princess Ophelia cocks her head to the side and regards Morgana with a curious look. "You seem displeased."

Morgana freezes at that. She shouldn't be, but the Princess is right. She's more than a little displeased though. She's... she's... she doesn't know what she is right then, but it's not a feeling she's accustomed to. It's unfamiliar and she doesn't like it. It's bitter and she hates it. Turning to the Princess, she holds her head high as she finally speaks. "Merlin is a friend of mine... I'm sure you understand the importance of friendship?"

"I do." Ophelia nods.

"Then you know that I only want him to be happy... and I barely know you, so-"

"That's part of the reason why I wanted to move in here." Ophelia cuts in. "So we could get to know each other better and I hopefully get your approval. I'm sure King Uther will have no qualms with me going after Merlin. Arthur more or less agreed that Merlin would-"

"Arthur agreed?"

Ophelia shrugs, "More or less. He didn't come outright and say it, but he did speak well on Merlin's behalf when I asked what his thoughts are on his manservant. If he'd had a problem with me asking, he would've said so... either that, or he's as oblivious as a rock... as for you, I haven't even voiced my thoughts on Merlin and I can already detect your great dislike for me."

"And your father?" Morgana asks suspiciously. "If you marry Merlin, your Kingdom has nothing to gain... what does your father think of all this?"

Princess Ophelia simply shrugs, "My kingdom is not the one who needs this alliance, Lady Morgana. King Uther is the one who requested us here. My father simply wants me to be happy... and I believe Merlin is the only one who can give me that. He makes me smile just by being around me." She then grins, "So my father will not have a problem with any man I choose. Everything else I do, is his choice... and Merlin will be mine."

The Lady Morgana is at a loss for words. All of this is insane! The Princess wants to take Merlin back to her Kingdom with her? And marry him? She looks at the Princess with narrowed eyes. "And what does Merlin think of all this?"

The Princess bites her lip. "I haven't asked him yet... as of right now, Merlin has no clue that I want him to be my future King. But that should change soon."

"And if he disagrees?" Morgana asks with bated breath.

The Princess is silent for a moment... "Then I plan on changing his mind. It shouldn't take much." She turns her back to Morgana and goes through some of her things, marking the end of their conversation.

Morgana swallows hard and turns to the door, making her way outside. She needs to find Arthur and demand that he fight for Merlin. He's the only one who has some say over Merlin. And if he fails, she's stepping in… and if or when she does, this will officially be war.

...

A/N: Ugh… I don't even know what I think about this chapter. The plot was so clear in my head, and when I wrote this chapter, it just sort of shriveled up like a dead flower petal. But there is a slightly bigger story behind this than just Ophelia wanting to marry Merlin, so no worries if this all seems so unrealistic. Anyway, thanks for reading and please review!

Also, check out my new multi-chapter Mergana fic if your'e interested. Its called, "Servant in Shining Armor", and it's kind of a cross between Cinderella and A Knights Tale (movie). Let me know what you think of that. Also, I'm not sure what fic I want to update first, so help me out with that, will ya?

Should I update "The Thief", or "Servant in Shining Armor" first?

Thanks a ton, and leave a review please?

-McDiggin'It


	3. Chapter 3

Title: He Is Mine

...

Chapter Three:

...

As it turns out, Arthur _doesn't_ have a say over Merlin... at least, not where Uther is concerned.

During dinner, Ophelia does not show, and neither does Merlin. Morgana swallows her jealousy and anger, knowing that she really has no right in what the Princess or manservant do. Yet still, the knowledge that they're out riding together, mostly alone, spending time together, probably making jokes about her, makes Morgana's blood boil.

King Athrwys uses the time after dinner, to voice his daughters wishes to pursue Arthur's manservant. "I will pay whatever amount you want for the boy."

Though Uther and everyone else knew of Ergyng's odd and non-traditional marriage customs, it still came as a surprise.

Despite Uther's insistence that the King of Ergyng pick someone more suitable for his daughter, Athrwys had already made up his mind. His explanation being, "Ophelia is all I have left. Before my late Queen, Alice passed away, she made me promise her one thing, and one thing alone... and that promise, was to let our daughter be free and happy." And when Uther still didn't seem to understand, the King of Ergyng continued, explaining how his late Queen had been disowned by her own father, a nobleman from another Kingdom, because she refused to marry a Prince she did not and could not love. Alice ran away and began a new life in Ergyng as a mere peasant. All she had in her possession, was her mothers brooch, which she sold to a noblewoman who admired it when they met in a market. With that money, she bought food, a bottle of ink, and some paper.

She began to write poems, which quickly became popular around the city, and that was how King Athrwys, Prince at the time, found and fell in love with her poems.

King Athrwys spoke with pride, "I was a man of simple needs. My mother taught me the importance of living simply, for one cannot know another's struggles if you have not been in their shoes."

He explains how he had his fathers men search the entire Kingdom for the writer of the poems, and once he found her, he fell in love with her, and began to court her. A year and a half later, he proposed, she accepted, and his parents approved.

Again, the idea of a Prince marrying a peasant (no matter what her previous status was), is beyond Uther's understanding.

King Athrwys merely smiled, "My mother believed that a true Queen does not carry her crown on her head, but in her heart. And a true King bows down to no one, but his Queen... the day I fell in love with Alice, my mother knew she was going to be the future Queen of Ergyng. And she was right. Alice was a marvelous Queen to our people until her very last day." King Ergyng beams with pride, although there was a hint of sadness in his eyes as he fiddles with his ring.

Uther nods slowly and looks up at Arthur and Morgana.

Arthur looked emotionless, while Morgana felt a rollercoaster of emotions take over her senses.

 _How could I possibly still hate the child of such an honorable man and woman?_ She forces herself to remain calm when Uther finally relents and agrees to have Merlin ready for the Princess. Morgana's immediate despair turns to hope when King Ergyng shakes his head.

"I want my daughter to be happy, but I also do not wish to spoil her too much... so she will pursue the boy, but he will choose whether to marry my daughter if that is what she wishes, or he can choose to remain here... my daughter will have no say in the boys choice."

Uther contemplates the choices, and laughs, "The boy is a fool if he chooses to stay as a manservant."

"A fool is one who chooses wealth over his heart." King Athrwys disagrees. "Wealth cannot buy happiness."

Morgana admires the honorable King. He is a true King in every aspect of the word. A man who has values and beliefs that some, namely Uther, cannot fathom. And though it is still quite odd to think of a peasant marrying someone of noble birth, Morgana thinks she's beginning to accept it.

...

Merlin is nervous. For some reason, the beautiful Princess of Ergyng asked _him_ of all people, to accompany her on a ride out in the forest... at night. At first he was suspicious that she might be an evil sorceress in disguise and she might try to murder him in the night, but then he remembered that no one but his mother, Will, and Gaius knows about his secret, and as far as the Princess knows, he's just a simple manservant. A nobody.

He then tried to chuck it as her needing him to conduct servant-ly duties, but then he remembered Ergyng's customs.

After several hours of hair-pulling, nail-biting possible reasons why the Princess invited him on a ride, Merlin is interrupted by a guard from Ergyng. The guard bows towards him, which Merlin immediately found odd. He says nothing as the guard straightens back up and speaks as if to a noble. "The Princess Ophelia would now like for you to join her on a horse ride out of the city. Whenever you're ready."

Merlin stared for a long moment before hurriedly grabbing his jacket and following the guard down to the stables. He has to pinch himself several times, not entirely sure if this is a dream or reality. As he nears the stable, he easily spots the beautiful blonde Princess, smiling to herself as she brushes her horse's white mane. She grins widely upon seeing him, and it instantly sends a swarm of butterflies into the pit of his stomach.

"Are you ready?" She asks as he comes to a stop a few feet away from her and bows in respect towards her.

"Yes, your grace." He says, and then realizes that he'd just disregarded her warning of calling her anything that isn't her given name.

Ophelia giggles at him and shakes her head. "I'm sure you'll break that habit sooner or later." She says slyly before mounting her horse and looking down at the blue-eyed man. "We should get a move on before darkness falls."

Merlin nods as he goes to one of the available Camelot horses and mounts one after checking the saddle, reigns, and harness. "After you, Princess." Merlin replies cheekily.

Ophelia grins widely and leads the way. She hopes things will go as planned. And if they do, she hopes to be able to do something she's wanted to do since she first laid eyes on the manservant.

...

Morgana paces her chambers as Gwen prepares her bath. She hates that it's so cluttered now, what with the Princess Ophelia's belongings as well as the new bed now sitting across from hers, taking up all the space.

Gwen comes back and stares at the woman with a curious look. She almost instantly knows what's wrong. "They'll probably be back soon."

Morgana looks at her maid and blushes. "Am I _that_ obvious?"

Gwen smiles and shakes her head. "I used to do the same thing when I thought I liked Merlin a little more than I should." She pauses and frowns before her eyes widen comically. "Not that he's likable or anything... I just- he was the first boy to stand up to Arthur and I... liked that about him. That he didn't care about Arthur's title." Again, she pauses, frowns, and widens her eyes. "I mean.. not that I wanted Merlin to not care about-"

"Gwen!" Morgana laughs and shakes her head at the maid. "I know what you mean... and I agree with you." She shrugs, "Merlin is quite likable... and it seems like the Princess of Ergyng agrees with us." She sighs heavily and shakes her head.

Gwen bites her lip as she studies the woman in front of her. "He admires you, you know?"

Morgana looks up at Gwen with a confused look. "What?"

"Merlin... I knew from the moment I caught him holding one of your robes while you changed behind the screen, that he admires you."

Morgana's eyebrows furrow even further in confusion. "What are you-" Morgana cuts herself off and shakes her head as she blinks rapidly. "What?"

Gwen's eyes widen yet again upon realizing what she'd just said. "Errr... I- he- Merlin was here that day, but- would you like to take your bath now, Milady?"

Morgana couldn't help her curiosity as she walked up to her maid and looks curiously at her. "What do you mean? What day?"

Gwen hesitates and looks away. It may not have been a bad he-might-lose-his-head type of thing, but still... she doesn't think Merlin would've wanted her telling the Lady Morgana that he was sort of spying on her when she was changing. "It was a long time ago, Milady... and I'm sure he didn't mean to come into your chambers when you were changing. He was just dropping off your sleeping draught, and I believe you thought he was me, and-"

"Wait." Morgana's mind races back to when Merlin first showed up in Camelot. She saw him for a mere moment during Mary Collin's son's execution, but she didn't really notice the manservant then... or ever... until Princess Ophelia did. She shakes her head and looks at Gwen. "You said he saw me changing?"

"No, Milady!" Gwen says quickly. "He was simply doing as you told him to do..." she glances away and back before adding, "Or what you thought you were telling _me_ to do. When I got back from fetching the fragrances you asked me to get from the market, he was holding your robe, and you were changing behind the screen."

Almost instantly, the memory of that day comes back to her and her eyes widen at her maid. "I remember! I thought you sounded a little odd that day when I asked you to hand me my robe... but I never-" she stops abruptly and looks at Gwen with narrowed eyes. "Why didn't he say anything?"

Gwen stares. "I can't possibly know why Merlin does the things he does, Milady… although, I suspect he was simply tongue-tied."

"What?" Morgana thinks this odd. "Why?"

Gwen shrugs, "You, Milady… I find it quite nerve-wracking, distracting, and awkward whenever I'm in the presence of someone I like."

At this, Morgana's eyebrows shoot up her forehead for two reasons. The first one being, whether Gwen likes someone… and the second being, "You think Merlin liked me?"

Again, Gwen stares. "Milady, I don't mean to sound straightforward or cajoling, but you are the fairest woman in Camelot. Merlin would be mad to not at the very least find you attractive. Add that to all your wonderful qualities and strong belief in doing what is right, and I'm sure any man would like, if not love you."

Morgana is truly touched by her maid's words. So touched in fact, that she crosses the room and pulls the other girl into a hug. "Oh Gwen, that's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me."

Gwen smiles widely as she hugs her back. "I am only speaking the truth, Milady."

Morgana pulls away and smiles sadly. "Thank you… for cheering me up." she sighs heavily and shakes her head as she looks around her crowded chambers again. "Today has just been the roughest of days."

"I understand, Milady…" Gwen bites her lip as a thought comes to her. It's not the wisest thought, but it's the purest. "Perhaps, you should keep doing what you always do, Milady."

Morgana looks curiously at her. "And what is that?"

The maid smiles and nods her head towards the window where she sees two people on horses, followed closely by four other people on horses as well; the four, obviously guards from Ergyng. Merlin and Princess Ophelia were back from their ride. "Doing what you believe in, and damn the consequences."

Morgana glances out her window and instantly knew what Gwen is implying. A plan begins to formulate in her head as a smile broadens on her lips. She turns her head back towards her maid and nods. "Perhaps you're right, Gwen." her smile turns devious as she glances towards her bath chambers. "I believe it's time for my bath now… For tonight, I want to look my best."

Gwen's eyebrows furrow in confusion. Dinner is over, and pretty much everyone in the castle is getting ready for bed. She cocks her head to the side and regards Morgana with a curious look. "Tonight, Milady?"

Morgana nods, "Yes… I'm not feeling very well, so I believe I'll be going to see Gaius."

This time, the maid is seriously confused. "You're not feeling very well, Milady? Perhaps I should call him to your chambers?"

"No." Morgana shakes her head as she begins walking to her changing screen. She smiles at the sight of it, remembering Gwen's retelling of how Merlin had been there that day when she was changing. "I think I might spend the night in the Physicians chambers. If he can't figure out what's wrong with me, he'll have no choice but to let me stay there until I feel well enough to walk back up to my chambers."

Gwen slowly begins to realize what Morgana is saying and widens her eyes at the changing screen. "Is that wise, Milady? King Athrwys may be more lenient about his daughter's actions, but King Uther is a whole other story."

Morgana simply smiles to herself as she begins pulling her dress off. "Uther can't possibly expect me to walk up to my chambers while feeling too ill and dizzy to do so…" her smile grows wider and she bites her lip at the prospect of being closer to the manservant. "…unless Merlin carries me back up here."

Gwen couldn't help her gasp. "Milady!"

"What?" Morgana asks innocently as she steps out from behind the screen in just her undergarments. "It's fine, Gwen… I have a feeling that Princess Ophelia isn't going to stop trying to take Merlin from Camelot. And I'll be damned if I just sit around and let her. If she's trying to convince him to go _with her_ , I'll try to convince him to stay _with_ _me_." with that, the Lady Morgana turns on her heel and disappears into the bath chambers. Gwen just gapes at the empty spot where the woman had just been standing. The maid has a feeling that this is going to officially turn into a war between Princess Ophelia and the Lady Morgana. She knows who she's rooting for, but… it all comes down to Merlin.

…

A/N: I hope you guys liked this chapter! I wanted to build the tension up a little. Next up, Morgana shows up to Gaius' chambers with an "unknown ailment"… and Merlin is about to get hit with a serious case of Morgana! Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you all think of this chapter! I'll be updating as soon as possible.

-McDiggin'It


	4. Chapter 4

Title: He Is Mine

…

Chapter Four:

…

The Lady Morgana feels marginally bad when she sees the tired look on the old physician's face. But that feeling goes away as soon as she takes off her outer robe and Merlin emerges from his room, half naked in only his trousers and boots. He doesn't notice her at first, his head down as he stares at a book in his hands.

"Gaius, what does the word revela-" the manservant cuts himself off when he raises his head and sees Morgana standing there, staring at him.

Morgana hides her triumphant smile at the look Merlin gives her as his eyes widen and takes in her full appearance in her thin sleeping gown. She turns, setting down her outer robe before looking back at the manservant and admiring his naked chest. He's a little lean, but not overly so. Maybe two years ago he would've been absolutely gaunt, but his hard work has certainly paid off. His abdominal muscles are beginning to come in, and his biceps are forming, as well as his pectorals. She used to think she wasn't into someone with Merlin's physique, but… well, seeing him now has changed that.

"Milady…" the manservant blinks rapidly and bows his head, then realizes his lack of clothing and stammers, "For—forgive me, Milady. I wasn't told— I mean, that is— I didn't know you'd be here, and I do apologize for my state of—,"

"Merlin," Morgana laughs lightly. "It's okay… I showed up unannounced and it's not your fault that I'm feeling a little under the weather, so…" she shrugs.

"What was it you were saying, Merlin?" Gaius cuts in with an amused expression as Merlin tries to cover his chest with the book in his hands.

"Errrr, I don't— I can't— I—,"

"Your words, Merlin." Gaius says with a hidden smirk. "Use them."

Merlin groans lightly and tries to retreat back into his room. "I forgot why I came out here." the manservant confesses with a blush.

Gaius nods, "Then perhaps you should go and put on a shirt. Maybe that ought to return your memory back to you."

With a quick bow towards the King's ward, the manservant turns and runs back into his room, closing the door behind him.

Morgana tries not to giggle, but it happens anyway.

"Forgive him, Milady." Gaius says with a sheepish smile. "He tends to be shy and clumsy around women."

Morgana shakes her head and smiles at the physician. "It's okay, Gaius… I think it's cute."

The physician nods and offers her a goblet of water. "You said you're not feeling well?"

Morgana nods and takes the goblet. "Yes… I suppose it started earlier today. I just felt a bit out of sorts and now the pain in my head won't go away." she takes a sip of the water before setting it down on the table.

"What are your symptoms?"

The King's ward immediately starts listing off a whole bunch of random symptoms. "Coughing, headaches, body aches, nausea, a bit of sneezing and vomiting earlier, shortness of breath, dizziness and lightheadedness, cold sweats, and some loss of balance."

Gaius makes his way towards her and lays his hand over her forehead. "Hmmmm… well you don't have a fever." he mutters. "That's always a good thing. Perhaps it was something you ate?"

Morgana shakes her head. "I don't know what I'd eaten that would give me this horrible ailment, Gaius." She glances quickly up at the physician, making sure his attention is on her before feigning a fall and a pained groan. For someone who's old, the physician sure does move fast. He quickly rights her with his arm, and with the other, he clears up a bench and moves her to sit on it. Morgana groans again, and leans towards the table, placing her head on the edge of it. She scrunches her face up into a pained expression before gripping her head. "My head." she groans.

Gaius' face is immediately a picture of concern as he moves towards his chest of potions. He searches for a few moments before pulling out a bottle of reddish liquid. "Drink this." he says as he hurries to her side.

Morgana looks warily at the potion. "What is it?"

"It's for headaches." The physician assures. "It's not strong enough to completely get rid of normal headaches, but it should help for now until I figure out exactly what's wrong with you, Milady."

The Lady Morgana nods and feigns another groan of pain as she unstops the bottle and knocks back it's contents. She's glad there's no nasty aftertaste. "Thank you, Gaius." she doesn't feel any significant difference, although she suspects she would've felt the effects of the potion if she had actually had a headache.

"How do you feel, Milady?" Gaius asks worriedly.

Morgana takes a deep breath and deliberately lets it out shakily. "Lightheaded." she lies easily. She feels bad about lying to the physician, but she justifies it with the lies being for a good cause. Keeping Merlin in Camelot is important… but then again, she's not really doing this for anyone but herself. Sighing, she lays her head on the table again and mumbles incoherently. "I don't feel too good, Gaius."

Gaius nods and looks over at his ward's door. "Merlin!"

Almost immediately, Merlin stumbles out, now wearing his usual red shirt. "Yes?" he asks the physician, but quickly forgets about the physician when he looks over at the Lady Morgana. "What's wrong?" he asks worriedly as he approaches the King's ward and looks closely at her.

Morgana tries not to smile too much at him. "Just not feeling so good." she mutters. "I'm sure I'll be fine soon."

Gaius goes to work, mixing potions and looking through books. "I'm whipping up a quick remedy for common unpredictable illnesses, Milady. It'll be ready in a few minutes."

Morgana nods and lets her eyes flutter closed.

"Merlin, how does she look?" the physician asks from his place on the other side of the room.

The manservant looks at the King's ward again, this time really scrutinizing her. Morgana finds herself staring right back at him, observing his features as he looks over her. She takes mental notes of the manservant's extremely good looks. Usually, men will look good from afar, and then look remarkably puffy and blotchy up close… but not Merlin. His eyes are a brighter blue up close, and just his whole face looks absolutely flawless. She sighs dreamily as her eyes begin to close of their own accord. Suddenly, her whole body feels relaxed just from being so close to him. She thinks it may be the potion she drank thats making her feel so relaxed, but she ignores that.

"I think she's falling asleep, Gaius." Merlin calls over his shoulder.

"Don't let her sleep." the physician warns.

Merlin looks incredulously at the physician. "How do you suppose I do that?"

Gaius huffs and glares at his ward. "Talk to her. Ask her questions, and say things that won't bore her to sleep, Merlin."

Merlin frowns at his uncle. Arthur must be rubbing off on the old man or something. "Fine." he then turns back to Morgana and smiles at her. "Milady, you have to stay awake, okay?"

Morgana nods as she continues to trace his handsome features with her eyes, wondering how she had overlooked him for two whole years. This whole time, he'd been there, passing back and forth in front of her, smiling at her, looking at her, being there for her, supporting her, and serving her well… not once did she notice him. And she hates herself all the more for not noticing the manservant until someone else did. It makes her wonder if she would've ever noticed him if Ophelia hadn't shown interest in him… and she's disappointed in herself for taking this long to notice. Playing her part, she lets her eyelids close again.

"Milady." Merlin says in a panicked tone. "Please open your eyes." he begs softly.

The King's ward opens her eyes again and looks at the manservant with a perfectly feigned weak smile. "You'll have to do better than that to keep me awake, Merlin."

The manservant blinks at her and then looks around before giving her a curious look. "Okay, what should I do, Milady?"

She shrugs, "It depends."

"On what?"

Again, she shrugs, "On what you're willing to do to keep me awake, Merlin." she says his name ever so softly.

Merlin's mouth begins to open, his cheeks burning in embarrassment as he stares at her. After a few moments of silence, the manservant finally sighs softly and whispers to her. "I'd do anything, Milady… just tell me."

She doesn't have to think long. She shifts a little and smiles at him. "Tell me about the most beautiful thing you had ever seen in your life."

Merlin's eyes widen like saucers, and he alternates between opening and closing his mouth. It makes him look like a fish, but… a really good looking fish. After a few moments, he nods and bites his lip. "Okay…" he says slowly. "The most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life… it's a tie between two things."

At this, Morgana frowns. "Two things?"

Merlin nods. "It's a hard decision, but… I might like the other… thing, more." he shrugs.

Morgana nods, "Tell me about them."

"Well, one of them is… well, it's beautiful. Sometimes it can be good, and other times, it can be bad."

Morgana frowns, not sure of what to make of that. When she had asked him the question, she expected, or more accurately, she _hoped_ that he would be talking about her. But now she's not so sure. "Go on." she urges.

Merlin nods. "I adore it with all my heart…" he says, and Morgana smiles again. "Sometimes I feel like I can't live without it… and other times, I'm more sure I can't live without it than I am with anything else in my life." he smiles and his eyes glaze over as if he's far away.

Morgana frowns deeply. If he were talking about her, he would've been staring at her as he said those things. But instead, he'd been staring off into the distance as if he's somewhere else. Jealousy fills Morgana's chest and lungs as she watches the manservant. Is it possible that he's speaking of the Princess Ophelia? Did the Princess already say something to him? Did they share some intimate moment in that forest during their ride? The questions are endless, and so is Morgana's jealousy. She grits her teeth and swallows down her pain. "And the second thing?" she asks as softly as she can. He _did_ say it was a tie between two things? Perhaps the second thing is her?

Merlin blinks and looks back at her. "Right… errrr, the second thing is just as beautiful as the first thing, if not, even more beautiful." at those words, Morgana's heart soars.

"Really?" she smiles, and absolutely loves the fact that Merlin is actually staring deeply into her eyes as he nods.

"Yes… it's probably the most amazing thing I've ever seen… it's beautiful, and bright, and everything good in this world." his voice turns so soft, the only people who can hear what he's saying, is himself, and the Lady Morgana. "When I'm looking at it, my heart expands with warmth and desire… I want it, but I know I can't have it. I wish I could offer something I have or own in exchange for it, but I know I don't have that kind of thing to offer…" he trails off, and his eyes bore into the green emerald's of the King's ward. "Every time I see it, I want nothing more than to have it with me at all times… to be one with it. To love it." he then blinks and looks away again. "But I know I can't… not now, not ever."

Morgana swallows down the lump forming in the back of her throat. She's almost a hundred percent sure he's talking about her. Otherwise, he wouldn't have stared right into her soul and said the exact same things she wants to say to him. Shaking her head, she closes her eyes. She knows for a fact that he's right. In the Kingdom they live in, the time they're living in, and the King they're serving under, they could never be together. It makes her heart ache with sorrow and sadness… but that doesn't mean she's going to just give him up to the Princess Ophelia. He may be a servant, and she may be the King's ward, but if there's one thing she's learned over the years in Camelot, it's that there's always another way. If there's a will, there's a way. And her will is telling her, that come what may, this manservant will be hers. It may not be now, it may not be later, it may not even be in this lifetime… but they _will_ be together. Of that, she is sure.

"Milady." Gaius mutters from somewhere above her, and Morgana quickly opens her eyes, looking up at the physician. From her peripherals, she watches Merlin retreat to a corner of the room, looking at another book.

Gaius hands her another potion, and Morgana looks questioningly at him. "What's this?"

"That, is a potion that should help with the body aches and dizziness." he nods towards her to drink it, and she does. "Now, I really hope you don't mind, but after hearing your symptoms, I can't be sure of the ailment you have… You may have to spend the night here for your safety, Milady."

Morgana smiles inwardly and lets out a fake, hacking cough. "That's fine, Gaius… thank you."

Gaius smiles and bows his head towards her. "Right… I'll be checking up on you in an hour. For now," he looks around the room and sighs. "Forgive me, Milady… but would you mind taking a rest on Merlin's cot until the time for your check up?"

Morgana shakes her head. "Of course I don't mind… that's if Merlin doesn't mind." she glances over to the manservant, who turns quickly and smiles sheepishly at her.

"Of course I don't mind, Milady… although, my cot isn't exactly the most comfortable."

Morgana smiles gently at him, "I'm sure it'll be fine, Merlin."

As it turns out, Merlin was right. His cot is as hard and uncomfortable as they come. Her heart aches instantly for him. She's been sleeping on luxurious sheets, pillows, and comforters, and this man has practically been sleeping on a bloody rock. And just as she was beginning to doze off, Gaius comes in to check on her before leaving again after a promise of another checkup in the morning. She shifts about a thousand times, trying to get comfortable, until Merlin comes into the room, holding what looks like a really long pillow. She sits up and stares at it. "What's that?"

Merlin smiles sheepishly, "Errrr, it's a body pillow, Milady."

"A what?"

He scratches the back of his head. "It's basically just a very long pillow… I made it myself." He trails off, looking down shyly. "It's not made of silk or anything velvety, but it's comfortable, and I thought…" he laughs nervously. "I just thought you would like to use it... it's okay if you don't- I won't be offended if you don't-"

"I'd love to, Merlin." Morgana smiles at his adorable stammers.

Merlin smiles widely, his eyes glazing over as he crosses the room and hands it to her.

She thanks him as she lays the pillow across her lap and studies it. She has large, plush pillows, but this body pillow is something she has never seen before. Looking up at the manservant, she gives him a questioning look. "Will you show me how it works?"

Merlin stares at her for a short moment before leaning down and taking the pillow. He sets it up beside the length of her body before looking at her. "You don't have to, but I just... I-" he scratches the back of his head and laughs nervously. "I cuddle with it."

Almost immediately, the image of Merlin cuddling with the pillow sears itself into her brain, and the King's ward smiles. "Okay." She lays back down, turning her body towards the pillow and pulls it against her chest before wrapping her arms around it and resting her face against it. Despite it not being silky and velvety or plush, it's still absolutely soft and comfortable. She smiles to herself as she inhales deeply, her senses picking up hints of pine, and a sort of citrus fruit. She has never gotten close enough to Merlin to be able to smell him, but she thinks that the scent on the pillow is his... and she thinks it suits him. He smells like the sweet nectars of nature. When she opens her eyes, she finds the manservant smiling goofily at her.

"Is it comfortable, Milady?" He asks curiously.

Morgana nods instantly and smiles at him. "It really is, Merlin... but what about you? I've taken your bed and now your body pillow too." She says with a sad frown. "I'm really sorry-"

"No, Milady." Merlin smiles and looks at her with kind eyes. "I'm used to sleeping on the floor, and-"

"You're sleeping on the floor?!" Morgana asks incredulously as she begins to rise from Merlin's cot. "I thought you had an extra cot you'd be using!"

Merlin shakes his head and chuckles softly. "We have only 2 cots, Milady. One for Gaius, and one for myself." He gestures to the small bed Morgana is laying on.

"Well we can't have you sleeping on the floor, Merlin." Morgana says sternly.

The manservant looks around the room and then shoots a questioning look at her. "Shall I sleep on the table? I don't think Gaius would approve of me—,"

The words are out of her mouth before she could stop herself. "Sleep with me." She gasps, slapping a hand over her mouth as her eyes widen up at the man standing beside the cot. She removes her hand a moment later and sits up as she watches a blush run up Merlin's neck and face. "I mean… not _with_ me. I—well, I meant that you could sleep _beside_ me. On the cot." She feels her own face redden with embarrassment and she looks down at the pillow. "We could use this to separate us." She mutters softly as she begins to fiddle with a piece of loose thread on the soft fabric of the pillow.

Merlin gapes, his face burning at the Lady Morgana's suggestion. "I don't think that's appropriate, Milady. I'm just a servant, and—,"

"You're not." Morgana cuts him off sternly, her eyes finally darting up to meet his. "You're not just a servant, Merlin… you're so much more than that."

Merlin smiles softly at her and he sighs, "Thank you, Milady… but that wouldn't be a good enough reason to tell Uther if someone should tell him that we've been sleeping together—errr, I mean sleeping in the same bed."

Morgana nods, knowing he's right, but she's not about to give up just yet. "Who's going to tell him?"

"Pardon?"

The King's ward shrugs at him. "I mean, _I'm_ certainly not going to tell Uther anything… are you?" she inwardly smiles at the look on the manservant's face. He's breaking.

He scratches the back of his head again, something that he does when he's nervous, or shy, or embarrassed, or scared. "I suppose… if you're sure, Milady." He looks at her for permission.

She doesn't even have to think about it, for she's already moving over to make room for him. Good thing they're both so small. Merlin, however, is extremely tall. Always a good thing, but apparently not for this particular situation. His feet end up dangling off the bed, and Morgana resists the urge to laugh at the way he's laying on his side with his feet poking off of the bed. Smiling to herself, she lays back down and turns, facing his direction so her face is in the body pillow between their bodies. After a few minutes of trying to stay still, the King's ward sighs heavily, moving her bare feet forward, wrapping them around Merlin's legs, and pulling them towards her own so his legs are pulled up towards her knees, and his feet are tangling with hers. Merlin raises his head up so he's peeking over the pillow.

"Milady, what are you—,"

"I want you to be as comfortable as possible, Merlin." Morgana cuts him off with a smile.

Merlin smiles to himself as he lays his head back down. With much boldness, he scoots in closer to the pillow, and lays his arm around it. But in doing so, his hand ends up brushing against Morgana's arm. Almost immediately, he pulls his arm back, not wanting to scare the Lady away, but she's suddenly throwing her own arm over the pillow, blindly grabbing his arm, and pulling it back over the pillow and to her side.

Morgana couldn't help her excitement. This, is as close, and as intimate she's ever gotten with a man. And they're not even doing anything but sleeping!... or at least, trying to. She sighs heavily as she moves the arm she has draped over the pillow a little farther, as her hand blindly feels around Merlin's side. Her fingers come into contact with his hand, and without a word or hesitation, she intertwines her fingers with his. For a moment, she feels Merlin's hand tense up, and she starts to fear that he would pull away, but then she feels his arm, the one draped over onto _her_ side of the cot, move. Not a moment later, she feels his hand find her free one, and his fingers intertwine with hers. And exactly like that, in a tangle of limbs and fingers, the manservant and the King's ward finally fall asleep.

It is also _exactly_ like that, that the Princess of Ergyng finds them the following morning, when she barges into Merlin's room to announce that she wants him to accompany her on an afternoon picnic. And of course, all hell breaks loose.

…

A/N: So sorry for the late update, guys! I've been busy writing 3 different Bio papers for school. Ugh.. those are the worst. Anyway, thank you so much again for reading, and extra thank you's, loves, hugs, and kisses to those who left reviews on the previous chapters, as well as my other fics. I really appreciate it, you guys. Unfortunately, I have very little time to myself (which I use to write these fics), so I can't really reply. But know that I DO read them, I love them, and I always take into consideration any critiques, requests, ideas, and suggestions. Thank you again! I'll be updating "Servant In Shining Armor" next, but I may or may not post a humor/romance one-shot modern Mergana fic before that, so keep an eye out for it!

-McDiggin'It


	5. Chapter 5

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Five:

…

Ophelia's mouth is hanging open in horror as she stares at the image before her. She had suspected something last night when Morgana hadn't showed up for bed, but it still comes as a total shock, to see that woman, sleeping so close, in the same bed, with _her_ Merlin!

Last night, during her ride with Merlin, she had been _so_ close to telling him about her intentions to make him her King, but that stupid guard had interrupted her, and insisted that her father had been specific about how long they were to stay out. Something about thieves and criminals, lurking in the night, waiting for the opportunity to kidnap and hold her hostage in exchange for ransom. And therefore, she had been unable to reveal her feelings for her future King, and could not steal the kiss she had been desperately looking forward to.

The Princess glares at the woman laying in bed, touching _her_ future husband. She was going to one up her with that planned kiss yesterday, but it didn't happen, and _now_ , Morgana is in bed with Merlin! Her blood begins to bubble and boil until finally, she snaps.

A loud shriek of anger causes Merlin to jump, stumbling off the bed and landing on his back. Morgana sits up in place, still half asleep as she looks towards the sound. As soon as her brain comprehends what she's seeing, her body awakens, and her own eyes widen towards the Princess Ophelia, glaring murderously at her.

Instinctively, she wants to smirk at the look on the Princess's face. But she decides against it, because Merlin is now looking between the two of them like a lost puppy. _So adorable_ , she thinks momentarily.

"What is going on?" the Princess of Ergyng asks through gritted teeth, her eyes darting between the two.

Merlin starts doing that thing where he opens and closes his mouth, but no sound comes out. Morgana smiles briefly at him before turning to the Princess of Ergyng. "Isn't it obvious? We were sleeping, Princess."

Ophelia glares angrily at the woman across from Merlin. She doesn't like the fact that she has nothing to say to that, and she especially doesn't like what she had just seen. _That... woman was in bed with my Merlin! My future King! They were in the same bed, separated by a mere pillow, hands and legs and toes touching!_ She can feel her face warming up with fury, and she knows she doesn't look very welcoming at the moment. As she glances at the Lady Morgana, her eyes narrow towards her. Morgana isn't showing any emotion on her face, save for a ghost of a smile. _The smug wench!_ Clenching her hands, she glares. "Moving in on him already, Morgana?"

Morgana is ready for her, scoffing and rolling her eyes. "I wasn't feeling very well last night. Merlin just happens to be _very_ good at making me feel better." she smirks.

Princess Ophelia's eyes widen at the insinuation before looking at Merlin with wide eyes. "You were comforting her?"

Merlin blinks, not entirely sure what's happening. The question has an answer, but how is he supposed to answer, when the Princess is staring at him as if daring him to say yes? He looks to Morgana for some help, which she offers.

"He was being a good friend, so I returned the favor and invited him to share the sleeping mattress with me." she shrugs as she glances at the Princess. "Do you have a problem with that, Princess?"

Ophelia could tell what Uther's ward is asking. _Are you jealous?_ Try as she might, she can't deny that she is. Sniffing and tilting her head up, she looks the woman straight in the eyes. "Of course not… Merlin can do as he pleases."

"Indeed he can." Morgana returns with a wide smile.

Merlin's eyes dart back and forth between the women. He's lost, but he's just glad he's not in trouble… yet. "Errr, was there a reason for your visit, Princess?" Merlin asks curiously.

Ophelia takes that as her cue to smile smugly at the Lady Morgana. "Yes… as a matter of fact, there is." glancing back to the adorable man, her smile widens. "I was wondering if you'd like to join me for a picnic later on this afternoon?"

Merlin's eyes dart towards the Lady Morgana, not sure of how to answer the Princess, although he can't really all out refuse her request, right? He's pretty sure that he could be punished for refusing. So he nods slowly. "Errr, of course Princess."

Gaius pops into the room then, looking as confused as ever. "What's going on?" He looks first at the Princess in surprise. "Your grace?" He bows before looking at his Ward, to Uther's Ward, and back to his. "Merlin, what are you doing in here?"

"Errrr, I was- well I- last night, I-"

"What he's trying to say is," Morgana cuts in softly. "... he was being a wonderful friend and made sure that I was," she pauses, her eyes darting to meet the Princess's, " _very_ comfortable last night." She slowly lifts an eyebrow and smiles smugly before looking back at the physician. "As a matter of fact, Merlin was _so_ good, that I actually feel a thousand times better now, Gaius... he's just what I needed." aware of the Princess still watching her, Morgana smiles lovingly at the manservant.

Merlin and Gaius gape at the King's ward in surprise as Ophelia glares openly.

"Right." Gaius mutters stiffly. "Perhaps I'll conduct one last check just in case?"

Morgana shrugs, "If you think that is best."

Gaius sends Merlin out to fetch some water as the Princess Ophelia fumes silently. She throws one last longing look at Merlin before storming out of the room.

Morgana almost instantly deflates, sighing heavily to herself.

"Milady," Gaius chimes in from his spot by the door. "If I may offer a bit of advice?"

Morgana nods, "Please do, Gaius."

"Ergyng is extremely lenient where peasants are concerned. But Camelot remains against peasants and royals intermingling… even if that peasant, is the manservant of the Prince himself."

Morgana frowns at the old physician. "What are you trying to say?"

The physician sighs heavily, "Merlin may be oblivious to what's going on between you and the Princess Ophelia, but not everyone else is as well."

Morgana bites her lip and avoids the physicians stare. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."

The physician rolls his eyes at that, "I'm saying that King Athrwys and King Uther have very different views about servants and nobles being together, Milady... be careful."

"Gaius, I'm not lost to what Uther believes—,"

"Then you should know," Gaius interrupts. "Milady, that no one, not you, not even Arthur can stop Uther from executing Merlin, should he learn of anything going on between the two of you."

She knows the Physician is right, and for that, the King's Ward can only groan in frustration. "Why does it have to be like this?"

The physician shrugs, "Its just the way it is."

Merlin enters with a pitcher of water, smiling shyly at the Lady Morgana as he sets it down beside her on the small table. "Are you sure you're feeling better, Milady?"

Morgana couldn't help but smile widely at him, her insides melting in adoration of his dimples. "Yes, Merlin. You've been such-"

Gaius coughs loudly and quirks a warning brow at the King's Ward.

Morgana's smile falters as she looks back to the manservant again. "You've been a great help last night, Merlin... thank you."

Merlin blushes and ducks his head. "It was a pleasure, Milady."

"Merlin, go get a start on breakfast, will you?" Gaius interrupts the mutual ogling between his Ward and the King's. He prays and hopes that Princess Ophelia hasn't gone straight to Uther with what she witnessed this morning.

...

Ophelia goes straight to Uther with what she just witnessed. She knows that as long as she openly pursues Merlin, no harm will come to him... so that leaves Morgana, who Uther will surely forbid from pursuing Merlin!

The blonde Princess smiles wickedly to herself as she watches Uther's face turn a dark, angry red. She had left out a few things here and there, partly for Merlin's benefit, but mostly for the fact that she had no desire to retell what she'd witnessed in Merlin's room. All she told the King, is that his Ward hadn't been to bed last night, and that she had been seen this morning, in Merlin's room.

"Guards!" He calls to two of his armored men. The guards immediately snap to attention, awaiting their orders. "Escort the Lady Morgana to the Great Hall immediately, and then bring forth Arthur's manservant as well!"

Princess Ophelia looks at the King with the worried look. "You will not harm him, will you?"

Uther stares at the Princess, fighting to keep his anger in check. On one hand, he's offended by her interruption. She has no power or right in his Kingdom to ask for favors... but on the other hand, Ergyng's alliance would gain him favors beyond any other alliance, so he forces a shadow of a smile onto his face. "He will not be harmed… I give you my word, Princess."

Princess Ophelia smiles and nods in relief. "Thank you, your grace."

Uther smiles back as he makes his way towards the Great Hall. He will not harm the boy, as per request of the Princess… but there are still ways for him to punish the boy for even going near his ward. King Athrwys' daughter may pursue the boy if she likes, but that doesn't mean he's going to allow his own Ward do the same! No… he already has Morgana's future husband picked out. One that will benefit Camelot, and he is definitely _not_ a manservant!

…

A/N: Sorry for the late update again! School and work is kicking my butt right now. Anyway, for those of you who are reading "The Thief", I promise I'll update as soon as possible. I'm still trying to work out a few kinks that I realized, don't go very well with the plot, so I'm trying to tweak the new chapter. But I hope you guys like this chapter! Things will get a bit complicated for Merlin from here on out, but I'm sure it'll eventually get better! I may or may not be updating "The Servant in Shining Armor" before the new update for "The Thief", so I apologize in advance to those who are following the latter. But all in all, I'll be updating ALL my stories! And lastly, I have 2 new Mergana fic's I'm working on. The first is a one-shot called "Trust Me", and the other is a multi chapter ,modern day Mergana fic about Merlin traveling a thousand years into the future, where he meets a modern day Morgana. So it's like a confused Merlin (straight from Camelot), meets modern day, equally confused Morgana, who happens to be a Psychiatrist story with an original plot that is probably not very original because I think I saw it in a movie or read it in a book somewhere. But yeah, which one should I post soon?! Let me know!

-McDiggin'It


	6. Chapter 6

Title: He Is Mine

...

Chapter Six:

...

Morgana fumes silently as she paces the stretch of her chambers. Things did not go well after she left Gaius' chambers. She had just finished changing with the help of Gwen, when three guards began to pound on her door. She had then been forced to go with them to the Great Hall, where she found Uther, Arthur, King Athrwys, and Princess Ophelia, standing around a manservant in chains.

Morgana had felt confused for a mere moment, before fear took over as Merlin turned to look at her with worried eyes.

"What's going on?" She asked no one in particular before turning her stare directly to Uther. "What is the meaning of this, Sire?"

"This," Uther had said with absolution, "is what happens when the law is disobeyed, Lady Morgana."

"What had Merlin done wrong?" She demanded in a high pitched voice. She could feel all eyes on her, but she did not care as she slowly approached the King of Camelot.

"Someone, who will remain unnamed, told me that you've been spending time with this boy."

Morgana's eyes immediately snap towards the Princess of Ergyng. Princess Ophelia stares her right in the eyes. How dare she! She pulls her eyes away to stare back at the King. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Uther's jaw twitches. "You are a Lady of the Royal court, Morgana. This boy, is a manservant."

"I hardly see what my title has to do with anything, Sire. Merlin lives with Gaius, who was helping me last night when I wasn't feeling so well."

It seems, this is news to Uther, for his eyes immediately dart towards the physician for confirmation. Gaius nods.

"She was running a high fever last night and could not stand on her own, Sire. It's a miracle she's even out and about today."

Morgana could've kissed Gaius in that moment. The elderly man knew she had no such sickness last night, and yet, he's covering for her... or perhaps, covering for Merlin. But it doesn't matter. Whoever the old physician is covering for, Morgana is grateful.

Uther turns his gaze back to Arthur's manservant and narrows his eyes. After a few contemplative moments, he waves a hand. "I will let this slide... but for precautions, I sentence the boy to a week in the dungeons."

Arthur, Morgana, and Princess Ophelia all turns their heads to the King in surprise. Before Arthur could defend his manservant, both Princess Ophelia and the Lady Morgana beat him to the punch.

"Sire!" Morgana cries in disbelief as Princess Ophelia let's out a simultaneous cry of "Your Grace!"

Morgana glares furiously at the Princess before turning to look at Uther again. "Why must you punish Merlin for helping me? He was doing his job, and doing it quite well!"

"You said he wouldn't be harmed!" Princess Ophelia cries to the King. She looks at her father for help, but the King of Ergyng shakes his head. This is her fight.

Uther's teeth grind together in anger. "You will both show some respect and restraint in my court. I promised I wouldn't harm the boy, Princess." He says to Ophelia. "And I will keep my promise. But the boy will learn his place, by spending some time in the dungeons. As for you," he turns to Morgana. "I forbid you from spending time with this boy. Should you disobey my warning, I will have to break my promise to Princess Ophelia, and I will not hesitate to execute the boy." The King then steps back and inhales deeply. "Do not make me break my promise... Are we clear?"

Princess Ophelia looks to be in despair as she nods her head. The Lady Morgana, however, looks to be downright livid. "Crystal." Morgana says through gritted teeth. With one last apologetic glance at Merlin, she quickly exits the hall. Her anger threatens to explode inside her, but she keeps it bottled for later, when Princess Ophelia is going to hear it from her.

...

Morgana knows not where her strength comes from, but she's glad for it when the door to her chambers swing open, revealing the blonde Princess of Ergyng.

Her anger surges through every muscle in her body as she grabs the Princess by the front of her dress, and slams her against the wall by the door. The Princess screams, but Morgana is quick to clamp a hand down over her mouth.

"You're a bloody fool for going to Uther, Ophelia." She glares as she removes her hand. "Do you have any idea what you've done?"

The Princess quickly composes herself and squares her shoulders back as she pushes the Lady Morgana's hands away from her dress. "Well it seems that I've just found a way to keep you from going after my future King." She smiles smugly.

Morgana laughs humorlessly. "Oh, you think that Uther's warning is going to stop me from keeping Merlin out of your evil grasps?"

"Evil?" Princess Ophelia scoffs.

"We both know there's another reason why you want Merlin. I may not know what it is, but I will find out. And when I do, you're going to lose him quicker than you thought possible."

"And what makes you think that I want Merlin for another reason than just making him my King?"

Morgana rolls her eyes, "Please... your father may be an honorable man, but it doesn't mean the same for you. Uther and Arthur are living examples of that. You have nothing to gain from Merlin, and I find it odd that your sole purpose for moving into my chambers, is to pursue him. You could've done that from your own chambers, but you didn't. You had to ensure that no one else is catching Merlin's eye... but I won't make it that easy for you." Morgana grins. "And I will not let you take him without a fight."

"You dare to defy your own King?"

"My King does not see through you... but I do."

Princess Ophelia laughs loudly at that and shakes her head. "You're so convinced that I'm some sort of evil villain, here to abduct a manservant... you must really be losing it, Lady Morgana."

"I know you're up to something, Princess." Morgana replies as she takes a step back. "And I will find out what it is." As she turns to leave, the Princess stops her.

"And Merlin?" The Princess says with an air of possessiveness. "You're really going to go against King Uther's warning?"

Morgana smiles to herself as she looks over her shoulder. "I guess you'll find out, won't you, Princess?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ophelia asks with narrowed eyes.

Morgana tosses her hair over her shoulder and smiles even wider. "It means I'm not giving up... you could run and tell Uther, but we both know what will happen if he finds out."

Princess Ophelia looks like she's about to spontaneously combust, realizing that her plan to tell Uther about the Lady Morgana, has backfired. "It doesn't matter... I will have Merlin whether you like it or not."

"Well that's another thing we can disagree on... but let's get one thing clear. Merlin was mine before you even got here, Princess. And he will continue to be mine when you leave."

With that, the Lady Morgana leaves her chambers abruptly, in search of the only person who can get her access to Merlin. The Prince of Camelot himself.

...

It takes her an hour of convincing before Arthur finally relents, if only to shut her up.

"Ten minutes, and that's it."

Morgana grins widely as she nods abruptly. "Thank you, Arthur."

"Don't thank me... I- I admit, I should've defended Merlin, but in this particular situation, I had no idea what to say to my father. I didn't know what really happened, but that's okay because I honestly would rather not know, but... if Merlin is to get out of the dungeons with his head still on his shoulders, you have to heed my fathers warnings, Morgana."

"I know." Morgana nods. "Which is why I came to you... you're the only one I can trust. I trust Gaius as well, but he can't exactly get me to see Merlin."

Arthur sighs and shakes his head. "Why are you so eager to see Merlin? He'll be back in a week."

Morgana bites her lip, contemplating if she should tell Arthur about her growing affections for his manservant. She decides against it. That will be a discussion for another time, when Merlin is not in chains, and there are no evil Princesses trying to steal him away from her. "Let's just say that I've grown accustomed to his company... he's a great listener."

Arthur nods in thought, "I guess you're right... about the company part. Merlin doesn't listen to a bloody thing I say." He scoffs as he grabs his keys from his dresser and leads the way out the door. Try as he might, he has to admit, he's doing this for himself as well. Merlin may be an idiot, but he's an idiot he's grown used to having around at all hours of the day. Perhaps a few minutes with the manservant will do some good... if only to watch him glare from the other side of the cells in the dungeon. Arthur grins to himself as he continues to lead Morgana down the corridors leading to the dungeon. They'll have to be quick and they'll have to be discreet.

Easier said than done.

...

Princess Ophelia stares at the door for a long moment before gritting her teeth in anger and storming over to her chest in the corner of the chambers. Throwing it open, she takes her mirror from the bottom of the chest. Glancing around quickly, she makes sure she's completely alone before beginning to chant in the ancient language of the dead. The mirror glows red, then fades away to reveal the reflection of someone... a beautiful woman with blue eyes and blonde hair.

"Is it done?"

"Not yet." The Princess says with a sigh. "The King's ward has managed to slow me down... but I will have him soon."

The woman in the mirror glares, "How hard is it to marry a manservant?!" She growls.

"It's not that simple. And like I said, the King's ward is getting in the way."

"Then eliminate her. The faster you get to the boy, the faster I'll be able to come back."

Princess Ophelia nods. "I'll do my best." With that, she waves a hand over the mirror and watches the reflection disappear.

The Lady Morgana will have to die if she is to ever capture Merlin's heart. And that will have to happen soon. She's running out of time.

...

A/N: I'm sure some of you know who the woman is... but the backstory will come later, so stay tuned! What do you guys think of this really short chapter? Good? Bad? Let me know! I'll update soon! New chapter of Servant in Shining Armor coming soon!

-McDiggin'It


	7. Chapter 7

Title: He Is Mine

…

Chapter Seven:

…

It's dark and dank in the dungeons stairway as Morgana hurries down while Arthur keeps watch. The Prince had had to threaten the guards on watch when they had initially refused to let them pass. Morgana felt a sense of gratitude towards the Prince for going against his fathers orders for her. She'll repay him later somehow, but for now, she has to hurry and speak to Merlin.

As she emerges through the corridor in the dungeons, she's reminded of the few times she'd ever been down there when Gwen had been accused of sorcery. She smiles to herself, remembering how Merlin had been the only other person to care for Gwen as much as she did. Arthur did too, but was torn between his loyalties.

The rattling sound of chains draws her towards the cell at the end of the corridor, where she finds Merlin, standing in the middle of it and staring up at the ceiling. She pauses for a moment, simply watching him before finally speaking. "Do you see a way out up there?" She asks, startling the manservant and causing him to stumble as he whirls around to face her.

His eyes widen in surprise upon seeing her. "Milady... what- what are you doing here?"

Morgana looks at the other empty cells before giving him a pointed look. "Well I'm not here for a walk." She says jokingly.

Merlin sighs and looks down at the shackles around his wrists. "You shouldn't be down here."

"I know. If Uther finds out he would harm you, and-"

"No." Merlin shakes his head. "I mean it's not safe for you... he could have you confined to your chambers, or put you on close watch or something of the sort. I've already gotten you into enough trouble."

Morgana couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in the manservant. " _You're_ the one in shackles and locked in a cell, and yet you worry about what Uther might do to me." She shakes her head as she smiles adoringly at him. He's so selfless and caring. Her heart literally tightens in her chest as her hands ache to touch him. " _I'm_ the one who got you in trouble, Merlin... and I'm so terribly sorry."

"No, I never should've brought you that pillow or slept in the same bed with you."

She sighs in defeat, knowing that the manservants selflessness would never let her win this argument. She also doesn't have much time, so she presses herself against the iron bars of the cell and reaches her arms through it. Merlin immediately knows what she's silently asking for, and he moves towards her. Just as he reaches her fingers, the chains around his wrist stops him from going any further.

Morgana tries not to show her frustrations at not being able to touch his face. So she settles for his hands. He takes her hands in his and stares longingly at her through the cell door. "Thank you." He says softly. "For coming to see me... you didn't have to."

Morgana nods, feeling the beginnings of a sob, forming in her throat. Her fingers tighten around his, conveying what she can't say out loud. What she can say instead is, "I wanted to..." she trails off and stares deeply into his blue eyes. "... _needed_ to see you. Even for just a few minutes."

Merlin closes his eyes and lowers his head as he brings her hands together and pressed his lips lightly against the back of them. "Even if this ends badly," he says with a tone of sadness. "This," he looks at her hands and runs his thumbs soothingly over the spot where his lips had just been. "This is enough for me."

The Kings ward shakes her head rapidly. She knows that he still has no idea that the Princess of Ergyng plans to marry him. "I like to think I'm not selfish, but I am." Merlin looks confused, but she continues. "This isn't enough for me, Merlin. I want more... and I promise you, I'll find a way to change Uther's mind."

Merlin gives her a small smile. "I'm just a manservant, Milady-"

"You're not." Morgana disagrees softly but sternly. "If you were, I wouldn't be here, wishing I was in your place instead. If you were just a servant, I wouldn't be here, wishing it was my lips you were kissing and not just my hands."

Merlin gasps lightly at that, his eyes widened in surprise. He knew that there was... something between them, but it's unspoken and forbidden. To hear her say that out loud, even if it's just them, makes his heart race, his palms sweaty, and his stomach flutter.

"I promise, I'll find a way to come and see you again." Morgana says softly. She doesn't know if she expected Merlin to say something about what she'd just said, but it kind of disappoints her that he didn't. She knows that he's just being him and sticking to his place as a servant, but it still stings when he does and says nothing but stare at her. That is, until he smiles at her.

"If I ever get out of these chains and this dungeon," Merlin says with a dash of confidence. "I'll make sure to fulfill your wish, Milady... that's if you'll still wish it by then."

Her heart soars at those words. She hadn't known she could feel so much for this man. For _any_ man... but particularly Merlin.

He has made her feel so much within such little time. But for better or worse, this is happening, and she's glad. She smiles longingly at him and nods. "I'll be waiting then."

At that moment, she hears footsteps coming down the corridor, and she squeezes Merlin's hands once more before he lets go and she takes a step back from the cells.

Arthur comes into view, holding a sack. He stops beside her and looks into the cells towards his manservant. He sighs and shakes his head. "Why must you keep getting yourself into trouble, Merlin?" He asks half seriously.

Merlin grins widely and looks briefly at Morgana before looking back. "I guess I'm just more than a manservant."

Arthur rolls his eyes at that. "Yeah... you're also an idiot." He says jokingly. He then pushes the small sack through the cells and tosses it into Merlin's hands.

"What's this?"

Arthur shrugs, "Something to get you through the week."

Merlin opens it and peeks inside, grinning widely at its contents. A blanket, four pieces of bread, some cheese, a few slabs of meat, and a full water bag. "Ah... thank you. Now all I need is to gain a hundred pounds, blonde hair, and you can call me Arthur." He jokes, earning him a playful glare from the Prince. Morgana laughs quietly as she watches the exchange between the two men.

"Don't die in there." Arthur says quietly.

Morgana smiles as he turns and nods to her. "We have to go. Father probably has scouts checking for your whereabouts."

She nods back, turning to look once more at the man inside the cell. "I'll see you soon." She says with confidence.

Merlin smiles back at her. "Thank you again... both of you." He grins at the Prince before moving back to his spot in the middle of the cell.

When Morgana returns to her chambers, she changes slowly before sitting down in front of her mirror and staring at her hands, more specifically, the spots where Merlin had kissed her. A warm and fuzzy feeling spreads in her chest as she imagines his lips pressed against her own. She sighs, shaking her head and silently cursing the bloody shackles from keeping that from her.

She supposes, she'll have to wait until he gets out. For now, she thinks it's about time she finds out what Ophelia is really up to.

...

He's starving, but he has to eat by rations. There's no telling how long Uther intends on keeping him down there. Despite what Morgana said about changing Uther's mind, Uther is still the King… and a hardheaded one too.

Merlin sighs as he stares at the wall. It isn't long before his thoughts begin to drift towards the Lady Morgana and Princess Ophelia. For some reason, the two of them have shown interest in him. He's not completely oblivious to the looks and the lingering touches that both women have bestowed upon him. What confuses him, is _why_ they're even interested in him. He's a servant. A poor, lowly servant. A nobody. He shakes his head, hoping it would lessen his frustrations. It doesn't. So he continues to ponder on both women.

On one hand, there's Ophelia. A Princess of a very powerful Kingdom, with marriage customs unlike any he's ever heard of. She's gorgeous, vibrant, and full of surprises… she reminds him a little bit of Princess Mithian. She's also very straightforward when it comes to approaching him about something. She doesn't hesitate and isn't afraid of touching him. A refreshing change from what he's grown accustomed to in Camelot. Other than that, there is nothing more he knows of the Princess.

And then on the other hand, there is the breathtaking Lady Morgana. She's _dangerously_ beautiful… emphasis on _dangerous_. She has been here long before he even got here, so she's used to how things are in Camelot. When he first arrived, he saw her up in the castle, watching the execution of a man accused of sorcery. He had seen the sad, disapproving look on her face, and he knew instantly that he wanted to meet her in person. He never thought he'd actually meet her then. When he saw her up close for the first time, she was about to change her attire. His jaw had dropped and he had almost drooled as he stared at her. He had never beheld such beauty and grace until then… Things went on with scarce meetings between them, and even scarcer conversations. When he had saved that druid boy and hid him in Morgana's chambers, he had finally began to understand Morgana. She's compassionate, kind, polite, and loyal. He was instantly infatuated with her and often found himself thinking about her. That is, until he realized that nothing could ever happen between them. Not only is he a servant and she the King's ward, she also would never look at him twice… or so he thought.

Now, he's not even sure what's happening. So much is happening and he can't figure out what to do.

A sound at the end of the corridor jars Merlin from his thoughts, and he gets up, squinting through the cell bars. A flash of purple catches his eye, and his thoughts immediately run to Morgana. Is she back again? And so soon? Just as he's about to call out her name, a feminine voice beats her to the punch and calls out _his_.

"Merlin?"

Merlin is surprised at the voice. _Two in one day?_ "Princess Ophelia." he manages as she finally comes into view. She presses herself against the bars and smiles at him. "What are you doing here?" he asks.

"I had to see you." she says.

Honestly, he doesn't know if he's even a servant anymore. Nothing makes sense. Why, are two of the most beautiful women alive visiting him, a servant, in the dungeons of all places?

Still, he's got to admit, there are worse things than this.

…

A/N: Sorry for the super late update. I swear I have next to no time to breathe. Anyway, I really hope you guys like this chapter. I'll try to update as soon as possible. I'll also be updating "Home" next. Let me know what you think!

-McDiggin'It


	8. Chapter 8

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Eight:

…

Merlin tries not to look like a fish out of water as he stares at the Princess of Ergyng. "You're joking, right?" he asks lightly. She had just told him, that she wishes for him to leave this life behind. To leave his home behind, and go with her to Ergyng, where they will then get married, and become the new rulers of Ergyng when King Athrwys steps down.

Princess Ophelia smiles at him and reaches her hand through the bars. "No, Merlin. I would not joke about something like this. Especially not with you."

Merlin stares at her hand, knowing that she means for him to take her hand in his. Slowly, he lifts his hand and takes hers in it. He immediately feels like he's betraying Morgana, and he pulls away quickly, looking up at the Princess. A look of hurt and confusion crosses over her face as she stares back at him. "I… I'm just a servant, your grace." he says as an excuse. "Unworthy of becoming a King, let alone yours." he looks around the dungeons and gestures at his surroundings. "I mean I'm in a dungeon."

The Princess lowers her hand back down to her side and shakes her head at him. "None of that matters to me… When you get out of these cells, we could be together, you and I."

Merlin's thought's immediately turn to Morgana. Her beauty, her brain, her heart, her kindness, her compassion, and her promise. Dear gods, why are two women of royalty and beauty, forcing him to make such hard decisions? One offers something he craves, but knows he can't have because of Camelot's customs and Uther's rule. And the other is offering something other servants would kill for… except, he's not that type of servant. He does not want riches or power. He just wants peace and happiness. And then she also wants him to leave behind his home and the only life he's come to know. To leave behind all the people he cares about. He can't. He just simply cannot leave his home. Gaius, Gwen, Arthur, Gwaine, Leon, and Percival… Morgana. Everyone he loves and cares about is here, save for his mother. Ealdor is even closer to Camelot than it is to Ergyng, which is hundreds upon hundreds of miles away. How could he even think about leaving? Morgana is here. Morgana, who has a wish he told her he would fulfill. A wish that he had just been daydreaming about before Princess Ophelia showed up. He realizes quickly that said Princess is still there, waiting for him to say something. He takes a step back, and looks down at the floor. "I… I'm—,"

"You don't have to answer me right now, Merlin." she says quickly, not wanting him to decline before even thinking about it. She knows from she has gathered that he isn't like most people. "I just wanted you to know that you have a chance to be something more than just a manservant."

Merlin smiles softly at her and nods. "Thank you, your grace."

Princess Ophelia nods and takes a step back. "I have to get back now. My father wishes to go over some important matters with King Uther tonight, and he wants me there."

The manservant nods. "Of course. And thank you… for coming to see me." he feels a weird sense of deja vu at those words. Except, it's a different girl. Not quite the same emotions either, but oddly similar.

"You're welcome." Ophelia says. "And remember to think about what I said." As the Princess waves goodbye and leaves, the manservant sits back down in the center of his cell and stares up at the ceiling. There really is nothing for him to think about. He already knows what he wants.

...

Morgana rehearses in her head a hundred times, what she is to say when she speaks to Uther. She knows it will be difficult to change his mind, but she made a promise to Merlin. And it's a promise she intends to keep. Before that, she consults Arthur. He knows Uther better than anyone, including herself.

She knocks twice on his door before he finally opens it. The first thing she notices, is his disheveled look and dirty clothes. She wrinkles her nose and quirks an eyebrow at him. "You look like crap. Long day?" She asks with a hint of a smile.

Arthur chuckles as he takes a step back and invites her inside. "I kicked out my new servant this morning."

"Why? Is he not a good servant?" She tries not to laugh.

"He talks too much. Asks too many questions. Looks funny."

At this, Morgana actually laughs. "You sure you don't just miss Merlin?"

Arthur scoffs and rolls his eyes, "I do not. Merlin is an idiot half the time."

"And yet you go out of your way to help him when he needs it." She smirks.

The Prince sighs and shakes his head as he sits down at his table. Morgana goes to the window and looks out onto the training grounds. "Merlin..." Arthur trails off as he looks up at her. Morgana turns with a questioning glance. "Your affections for him are obvious."

At this, Morgana casts her eyes to the floor. "I know what you're going to say..." she glances up at him again and sighs. "He's a servant, and I'm your fathers ward. We could never be together... and that may be true, but-" she cuts herself off and moves in closer to him, laying a hand over the one he has on the table. "...look me in the eye and tell me that you've met a man more loyal and noble than him."

Arthur tries and fails several times to try and name someone who fits that description... but the only person he thinks of, is Merlin himself. He looks up at Morgana and shakes his head. "I can't."

Morgana smiles in satisfaction at that.

"But that doesn't mean anything to my father. You know how he is, and how he never changes his mind once it's been made up."

Morgana bites her lip as she moves to sit on the chair beside Arthur's. "That's why I'm here."

Arthur's expression is that of confusion. "Morgana, if you're suggesting that I ask my father to let you marry him, then—,"

"No." Morgana stops him. "I'm not that naive, Arthur… I came here to get some advice on how I can change your father's mind about imprisoning Merlin."

"Oh…" The Prince sighs and shakes his head, "I've already tried repeatedly for the past couple of hours… I don't think there's any changing his mind for the time being."

"Why not?" she's desperate, because she knows she's the reason why Merlin is sitting in a dungeon right now. It was stupid of her to invite him to sleep beside her on his cot. She should've known that her luck would run out.

"That's just how my father is. You know this. He's a politician who believes only in the law and customs of the land. Once he makes a decision about something, there is no changing it."

Morgana thinks about that for a few long moments. She knows he's right. She's deluding herself into thinking that Uther would ever listen to a word she says. But still, she has to try. "I have to try."

The Prince sighs and shakes his head at her, "Morgana, what you're suggesting is dangerous. Theres no telling what my father will do to you and Merlin should you keep pushing this."

"I made a promise to Merlin." She says sternly. "I will not break that promise."

At this, the Prince gives her a sympathetic look. "I understand that he means a lot to you. I understand that you feel like he's the only thing that makes you happy and whole. I understand that you made a promise to him, and you feel like you're doing this for him... but you'll only end up hurting him in the end." He's saddened by the thought that he's so utterly powerless to help his friends. "sometimes, you have to sacrifice your own happiness for the lives of the people you care for."

Morgana does not like what he's saying. But she knows he's right. She thanks the Prince for his time before leaving his chambers and heading towards the King's chambers. Her determination is set. Merlin will be out of the dungeons by tonight.

…

When she knocks on the King's chambers, his personal manservant opens the door for her. He bows low before asking her if she is in need of assistance. She quickly asks the manservant to give her some privacy with the King, to which the servant looks firstly at Uther for a approval before leaving when Uther nods to him.

"Lady Morgana." Uther says in his usual Uther-like tone. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" he asks as he rises from his table and goes to greet her.

Morgana tries not to roll her eyes as she hugs him briefly. She waits for him to take his seat before saying exactly why she's there. "Merlin, Your Grace."

Uther rolls his eyes immediately in an unking-like manner. "No." he say immediately.

Morgana glowers, "I haven't even told you why I—,"

"Arthur had already spoken to me several times today about letting his manservant out of the dungeons, Morgana. And like I told him, I will tell you as well. I am not letting him out."

"Why not?" Morgana asks exasperatedly. "Merlin has done _nothing_ wrong!"

Uther glares menacingly at her as he leans forward. "Do you think me a fool, Morgana?"

His ward bites her tongue hard, knowing that her answer to that question would not help her plea for Merlin.

"I know of your affections for that boy."

She doesn't back down, "And is it such a crime for me to care about him a little more than your laws and customs allow?"

"It is!" Uther bellows, rising from his seat and glaring at his ward. "Every decision I make, is for Camelot. We have nothing to gain if I just let you prance along with that manservant."

"His name is Merlin!"

"I don't care what his name is, he's a servant!" Uther shouts over her. "And I forbid you to speak of that boy again. Do so, and alliance or not, I will have him executed in front of you, Arthur, and the party from Ergyng. And they will have _you_ to blame."

She fumes silently, not seeing a way out. Yet, her hope is intact. As long as there is a breath left in her body, she will not stop fighting. As she stands there, staring at the King, she realizes something that breaks her heart. She could never be with Merlin. Not now. And if she tries to go against Uther, Merlin would suffer for it. She thinks back to what Arthur had said, about sacrificing ones happiness for the lives of the people they care for. With those words, she realizes what she must do.

"A deal." She says

Uther regards her with a confused look. "What?"

"We'll make a deal. On your terms... all I ask, is that you release Merlin tonight."

Uther is taken aback by that. "What kind of deal are you proposing?"

"I will do anything. _Anything_ at all... in exchange, you will release Merlin from the dungeons. No harm is to come to him, or our deal is off." She knows what she's risking. Pretty much everything. But for Merlin's life, it is worth it. All of it.

Uther scoffs, "I don't have to make any sort of deal with you, Morgana. I am the King. I can make you do whatever I-"

"You can." Morgana cuts in. "But I will not go willingly. I will fight you with everything I have. I will do everything in my power to delay all your decisions on my behalf. No one will want to come near me, and you will lose more with me than you will ever hope to gain. I promise you that." Morgana says with a powerful confidence she didn't know she possessed. She's practically threatening the king. But she does not care. He can take her deal, or take her fury.

The King stares at his ward with widened eyes. He had never been intimidated by anyone, let alone his own ward. He thought he'd had the upper hand, but now he's not so sure. Deciding to find out his advantages in this deal she plans to make, he asks, "If I let the boy go, you will do exactly as I say?"

She hesitates a beat, and then nods slowly. "Yes… and you must promise to leave him alone."

The King wanted to laugh. "You are really willing to sacrifice everything for one measly serving boy?"

She glares at him as she says, "You wouldn't understand. That serving boy has done more for me in the two years I've known him than you had ever done for me my entire life."

The look on Uther's face fades to anger at that, "I've given you a life that most women can only dream of!"

"I am not most women, Uther!" Morgana says angrily. "Yes, I've lived a privileged life. I've slept on a large, plush bed, and laid my head on soft, feathered pillows. I've eaten food of the best quality, made by the best cooks. I've worn clothes made from fabrics that costs more than some people make in a whole year. I know this!" she shouts, not sure why she's so angry. Perhaps it's because she knows what she's about to lose. "But by the gods, I've been dying inside everyday, yearning for something that gives my life meaning. I've been merely existing for the greater part of my life." tears begin to well up in her eyes, and she swipes angrily at them with the sleeve of her dress.

"And this boy gives your life meaning?" Uther asks confusedly.

"Merlin," she enunciates every letter in his name. "gave me something to look forward to. He gave me hope for freedom. When he speaks to me, he doesn't treat me like I'm your ward. He treats me like a woman. He respects me for who I am as a person instead of what I am to the King and to Camelot. He showed me that compassion and kindness is not a weakness, but a strength…" Morgana goes on, but Uther had stopped listening.

 _Why does she speak of a servant as if he were a King? I'm the King, and not once did anyone ever speak with such respect and praise for me!_ He couldn't believe it, but he almost feels… jealous of the boy in the dungeons. A boy who _has_ nothing, _is_ nothing, _means_ nothing, and _worth_ nothing! Even Arthur is fond of the boy, always making up excuses for his servant's odd behaviors. And the Princess of a powerful Kingdom wishes to make the boy her King! A Princess want to marry a servant! And her father is allowing it! Perhaps… maybe there's more to that serving boy than he's letting on. Uther's head begins to spin, so he quickly zones back when Morgana stops talking and looks expectantly at him.

"So do we have a deal?" Morgana asks hopefully.

Uther regards her with a pondering look before getting up and facing her. He has made up his mind. "In three days time, Lord Borin of Mercia will arrive here to court you."

Try as she might, she couldn't keep her face straight. Her jaw drops and her eyes widen in horror, for she knows exactly what the King is about to say.

"You will say yes when he asks for your hand in marriage. You will not show your affections for the serving boy. You will not speak to him. You will forget him and everything he means to you." Uther finalizes. "And I will let your serving boy go."

The confidence she had earlier when she proposed the deal, dwindles down quickly and dies. So many thoughts, fears, and heartbreaking realizations assault her brain in that moment, and she nearly loses her balance as her head begins to spin. Can she really do this? How will she tell Merlin that she sacrificed her single marital status for his freedom? How can she promise herself to a man she barely knows when her heart is already beating for another man? Morgana blinks rapidly several times, trying to pull herself back to the present. As her eyes meet the Kings, she could almost see him smiling. Refusing to back down from him and therefore breaking her promise to Merlin, she nods. "Fine."

Uther nods and smiles broadly. "I'll have the order made to release the boy tonight, and I will not harm a hair on his head. In exchange, you will not speak to him, or be found alone with him again. Finally, you will marry Lord Borin, and you will not be difficult. Should either of us break our word, the deal is off. Are we clear?"

Morgana swallows down the tears, the horror, the fear, the second thoughts, and the disgust she already feels at having to marry a man she has never met. "Yes."

It's done. Her fate is sealed, and Merlin is free. She tries to be happy that she had kept her promise. But she can't. From here on out, her life will be a living hell. Princess Ophelia will have no one standing between her and Merlin. And she… she will have to pretend that she does not care for Merlin. She will have to pretend that she loves another man. She will have to pretend that she is okay. But right now, as she leaves the King's chambers with her heart shattering into a million pieces, she is anything but okay. And she knows that she will continue to be anything but okay, for the rest of her life.

…

A/N: A whole new set of problems set in for Morgana and Merlin. Up next, Princess Ophelia's big plan begins to form, and Morgana avoids Merlin. I will try to update as soon as possible! Final chapter of "Home" will be posted next! Thank you so much for reading, you guys. I really appreciate the reviews and kind thoughts you guys left behind. Let me know what you think of this chapter!

-McDiggin'It


	9. Chapter 9

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Nine:

...

Sleep had been difficult to come by for Merlin. It's cold, and somehow the floor is much harder in the dungeons than anywhere else. After a very long time passes, he's not sure how long since its seemingly always night time in the bloody dungeon, he finally begins to relax. He pulls the blanket from Arthur around his shoulders and starts to doze off.

He's pulled into a half awake state by the sound of clanging metal, and he opens his eyes up to see two guards standing over him. Merlin shakes his head, wondering if maybe he's dreaming. But then one of the guards unlock the shackles around his wrists, and then kicks his foot.

Merlin sits up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What's going on?" He asks groggily. Fear begins to set in. _Had Morgana pushed Uther too much? Are the guards here to beat me? Are they going to have me executed? What time is it? God, I'm starving. I should've just eaten all the food in the sack Arthur gave me... at least I'd die on a full belly._

"King Uther has issued your release."

Merlin blinks, then stares. "What?"

"You're free to go." The other guard says.

At this, Merlin looks at the open cell door, then back again at the guards. "You're joking, right?"

The guards glare at him. "If you'd rather stay in here, then go ahead. We'll let the King know that you prefer to live here in-"

"No!" Merlin shouts, turning to gather his blanket and the sack of food before running out of the dungeons. He may be skeptical about this whole ordeal, but he's not about to take the risk of staying in that dark and horrible place any longer if he is indeed free to go. He can hear the guards laughing as he takes the stairs back up to civilization, two at a time. Once he's out, he heads straight for Gaius' chambers to ask the physician if he's heard anything about his release.

As he turns a corridor, Merlin halts abruptly and notes that he won't need to ask Gaius anything at all. At least not about his current situation, for just a few feet away, King Uther is headed straight towards him. Merlin swallows hard and bows when King Uther comes to a stop in front of him.

"Sire." Merlin mutters, not knowing what else to say. There's always the possibility that the guards had tricked him into thinking he was actually free, and he might very well lose his head now. Or, the guards were telling the truth.

Uther regards him with a distasteful look. "I expect you to get back to work immediately." the King orders.

Merlin nods his head and bows again. "Yes, Sire." he waits for Uther to continue past him before relaxing and continuing his own way towards Gaius' chambers. He needs a bath, some food, perhaps a goblet or two of wine, and hopefully some answers as to why he has been released. He couldn't very well ask the King himself for answers. He has no desire to be thrown back into the dungeons for questioning the King's decisions. He doesn't even take a full step before Uther stops him by calling his name… Merlin. Not 'boy', not 'servant' not 'you', but Merlin. It sounds extremely odd.

Merlin turns, looking at the King with a curious look. "Yes, Sire?" he couldn't be sure, but he thought he saw the King smirk at him.

"In three days time, Lord Borin of Mercia will be arriving here… I'm putting you in charge of getting him and his men settled in. You will mirror Lord Borin's every move and see to it that he has everything he wants or needs… _everything_." he emphasizes on the last word.

Merlin gapes. He had never done such a thing, nor had he ever been asked to do such a thing. And with good reason! He's total rubbish at coordinating events and keeping track of things. And now the King himself wants him of all people to watch and basically take care of a Lord from another Kingdom?

"Is that clear?" Uther asks sternly.

The manservant nods immediately. He can't exactly disagree with the King. "Yes, Sire… I'll see to it that it's taken care of."

Uther smiles at him. Actually. Bloody. Smiles. At. Him. "Good." the King then turns and practically floats away with a grin on his face.

Merlin continues to stand there for a few long moments, trying to figure out what the bloody bollocks just happened. First the King releases him from the dungeons, then he actually says his name, and then he assigns him as the bloody au pair for some royal Mercian Lord Boring!

"Merlin?!"

A familiar voice hollers confusedly from the other side of the corridor, and the manservant turns, smiling widely. "Arthur!" he has to admit, even though he had just seen the Prince a few hours ago, it's really good to see him again. He jogs up towards the Prince, and realizes that the Prince is staring at him with his mouth open. The manservant quirks an amused eyebrow at him. "Glad to see me?"

Arthur looks around hurriedly before taking the manservant by the arm and pulling him towards a wall. He hisses under his breath. "How the hell are you walking about, free?"

Merlin furrows his eyebrows at the Prince. "You didn't know?"

"Didn't know what?" Arthur asks, still baffled.

The manservant scratches his head and looks down the corridor towards the direction King Uther had disappeared to. He glances back at the Prince. He would've thought, Arthur would know. "Your father let me go."

The Prince blinks at him several times, then shakes his head and laughs humorlessly. "What?" he thinks Merlin is joking.

"Yes… and then he put me in charge of the party from Mercia." He laughs. "Imagine that! Your father actually trusts me to take care of-"

"What party from Mercia?" The Prince looks utterly confused.

Merlin shrugs, "A Lord Boring will be arriving in three days. Your father didn't say why, but-"

"Lord Borin?!" Arthur's eyes widen into saucers.

Merlin snorts, "Oh, is _that_ his name? I could've sworn I heard Lord Boring." He snickers.

Arthur blanches, realizing exactly why Merlin is free. He looks at his manservant, and he actually feels... bad. There's someone else he feels bad for, and he must go and check up on her. With that thought, he excused Merlin for the day.

Merlin stares and scoffs at him. "You're joking."

"I'm actually not." Arthur says truthfully. He thinks the manservant deserves some time off, for he has no idea why the King actually released him tonight. "Go get some rest, Merlin."

"Really?" The manservant is floored. Uther released him, gave him an important job, and now he gets the rest of the night off? This day just keeps getting better!

Arthur nods and gives him a quick pat on the shoulder. "Now go before I change my mind."

Merlin scurries off immediately, and Arthur watches him for a moment before heading the other way.

...

The moment she opened her door, she knew that he knew.

Arthur brushes past her and into her chambers. He waits for her to close the door before rounding on her and giving her an exasperated look. "What have you done, Morgana?"

She feigns innocence as she goes to her dresser and pretends to look for something. Princess Ophelia had left a while ago, for which she was very grateful for. She's already having a bad day as it is. The last thing she needs is for the Princess to see her sulking about. "What are you talking about?" Morgana asks, avoiding Arthur's eyes.

"You know very well what I'm talking about." Arthur replies.

Morgana grits her teeth as she stares at nothing in particular inside her dresser. She had tried not to think about what she'd done and what she'll have to face in three days, but now that Arthur is here and asking her with that knowing look, she knows that Merlin is out of the dungeons, Uther kept his word, and she will have to keep hers too. Tears well up in her eyes against her will, and she subtly tries to wipe them away. She hears Arthur move towards her and lay a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You shouldn't have done it." He mutters softly.

Morgana walks away from him and towards her window. "Spare me the lecture. I know what I did, and it's my decision."

"To marry that oaf?" His voice is soft, but his tone is incredulous.

Morgana turns to glare at him. "It was the only way."

Arthur sighs and looks at her with sad eyes. "He would've survived, Morgana... Merlin has been in much worse situations than sitting in the dungeons... but what you've done," he shakes his head. "It will probably break him."

She could barely swallow the lump that forms in the back of her throat as she stares at the Prince. He's right. She will break Merlin, and in return, it will break her. She's already halfway there. Tears cascade down her cheeks as she moves to the nearest chair by her table. She drops heavily into it just as the strength leaves her body. She cries as she lays her head in her hands. "I just couldn't bear to see him in there when I'm the one at fault." She shakes her head.

Arthur moves towards the table and sits across from her. "We could've found another way."

She drops her hands and looks at him. "Do you really believe that?" She doesn't wait for him to reply before continuing. "Uther is not as forgiving as you think he is, Arthur. I know he's your father, but it's true. He never would've let Merlin out, and we both know it."

Arthur sighs. A part of him knows she's right. But this could've been done another way. And he lets her know. "You know I wouldn't have let that happen."

"And how would you have done it?" She asks him angrily. She wants to blame someone for her misery, and Arthur just happens to be standing too close to the firing squadron at the moment. "Would you have let him escape? Let him run and live out the rest of his life as a fugitive?" She snaps at him.

"It's better than what you've done!"

"At least I did something!" She says angrily. "I made a promise to Merlin!"

"But at what price?" Arthur asks incredulously. Does she really not see what she has done to herself? To Merlin?

She shakes her head at him. "You told me yourself that nothing could ever come of me and Merlin."

Arthur sighs heavily, "It doesn't mean I wanted you to go bargaining your life away."

"What choice did I have?" Morgana asks exasperatedly. "My hands were tied and I saw no other way to convince your father to let Merlin free."

The Prince says nothing to that, instead saying, "I don't know much about these things, Morgana. I don't know much about feelings and emotions... but I know Merlin. And he would rather spend everyday in the dungeons than to have you promise your life away to Lord Borin."

"It would've eventually happened anyway!" She yells at him. Tears flow again as she stares at the Prince. "Whether we like it or not, you know, and I know, that one way or another, Uther would eventually have his way." She couldn't take it anymore. She already feels miserable enough as it is. "It's done, Arthur." She shakes her head at him. "And there's nothing you or I can do about it."

Arthur leaves Morgana's chambers feeling worse than he did before he entered it. And he didn't think that was possible until now.

...Ophelia...

It's fairly early when the Princess of Ergyng leaves Morgana's chambers and makes her way up to the East tower. She found that it's always empty there in the mornings. It has been only a few days since she and her father had arrived, and she had already seen the entirety of the castle. So far, the top of the East tower is the most convenient for her to get her work done. And today is a big day.

Last night, when she went to see Merlin in the dungeons, she had immediately sensed his hesitation. At first, she was offended. But then she realized something a lot more alarming than being nearly rejected... A mere manservant had not immediately accepted her offer to become her King. A man who has nothing to gain here, had actually been about to decline her generous offer to live a life of luxury by her side in Ergyng. Granted, that's not exactly part of her plan, but still... he doesn't know that!

For the rest of the night, she had not been able to think of much else. As her father discussed documents and alliances last night, her mind had wandered off towards the dungeons to a certain blue-eyed man. He is unlike any she has ever met. Most men would swoon and go out of their way to be with her... and yet, when she offers Merlin a lifetime with her, he hesitates.

Princess Ophelia shakes her thoughts away as she reaches the top of the East tower. As expected, it is completely empty. Reaching into her robe, she pulls out a hand mirror and checks her surroundings one last time. Once satisfied with her privacy, the blonde Princess begins to chant for a few moments. A gust of wind and an eerie feeling nearly overwhelms her as the mirror glows red, and then reveals the familiar face of the woman she's been taking orders from for the past few weeks.

"What news have you?"

Princess Ophelia shakes her head. "It will take a little more than just telling Merlin to marry me to convince him to come with me to Ergyng."

The woman glares. "Have you no common sense?"

The Princess bites her tongue. "Excuse me for not knowing how to properly court a man. I'm a Princess, not a harlot!"

The woman in the mirror rolls her eyes. "Must I spell it out for you?"

"You don't have to be so rude." Princess Ophelia says angrily. "I'm trying my best!"

"Well try harder!" The woman snaps.

The Princess sighs in exasperation. "What do you suggest I do?"

The woman in the mirror gives her a look as though it should've been obvious. "Seduce him."

Princess Ophelia gapes. "What?"

"Seduce him! Whatever it takes!"

"Are you mad? I can't just seduce the Prince's manservant." She says incredulously. It's absolutely out of the question.

"That is the only way to convince him. He may be a noble and loyal idiot, but he's still a man."

The Princess shakes her head in confusion. "What are you saying?"

The woman huffs as she throws back her hair over her shoulder. "I'm saying that a show of skin, a bat of eyelashes, and perhaps even a brush of your lips should push him right into our trap."

Ophelia didn't like that last part. Or any of it, really. She can seduce a man. She's done it before... but she's not even sure if Merlin is seducible. On top of that, she's not sure she can even do this anymore. Merlin has done nothing wrong to her or anyone. Shaking those thoughts away, she looks at the woman in the mirror. She can't afford to lose focus of the mission. "What of the Lady Morgana?"

"I thought I told you to eliminate her." The woman replies in annoyance.

"She's the King's ward!" Ophelia bellows exasperatedly. "I can't just bloody murder her, and quite frankly, I'm not a murderer either."

The eyes of the woman in the mirror suddenly go as dark as the night as she glares. "You told me that you would do anything to get what you want. _You_ were the one to bargain with me. A life for a life." She scowls and quirks a taunting eyebrow at the Princess. "Do you no longer want what you asked of me?"

Princess Ophelia swallows hard. "I do..." she trails off and tries to keep her tears at bay. "I'll try harder."

"Good." The woman says with a smirk. "Because if you don't, you will have failed yourself, and you will have failed your father. It'll be a pity if you fail."

The Princess says nothing, her heart and her mind warring within her.

"You know what you must do, Princess Ophelia." The woman says sternly. "Eliminate the King's ward, persuade the Prince's manservant to travel to Ergyng with you, and set me free of this spirit world... and in return, I'll return to you what you've always wanted."

The Princess nods slowly, her eyes turning to the handle of the hand mirror. "My mother."

"Yes. All you have to do, is convince the boy to join you in Ergyng."

Princess Ophelia sighs and nods. "Yes," she looks at the woman's reflection and adds in a slightly annoyed tone. "Nimueh."

...

She thought she was seeing things when a flash of dark hair, pale face, and a familiar red tunic and blue neckerchief catches her eye. She backtracks and stares down the hall. "Merlin?" She calls hesitantly.

The manservant turns his head and smiles at her, though his smiles don't quite reach his eyes. He has been dreading this moment. The Princess will probably be expecting an answer to the question she asked him yesterday in the dungeons. He knows his answer... he just doesn't know how he's going to break it to her. He bows to her as she comes up in front of him. "Princess." he nods.

Princess Ophelia stares up at him, still surprised as to how he's out and about. "What— how did you get free?"

Merlin shrugs, "The King let me go."

She's grateful. By the gods, she is… but, "Why? What happened?"

The manservant shrugs again. "No idea. He just ordered the guards to let me out."

The Princess smiles widely, although her mind still wanders to the fact that the King had just suddenly let go of Merlin after one day. She steps up to the manservant and gives him a look. "Perhaps it is fate."

Merlin blinks. He should tell her that he has made up his mind about her earlier proposition, but he doesn't want to hurt her feelings. So he smiles politely at her and looks around. The hall is empty, save for a few guards standing at their posts. "Errr, was- was there anything you needed, Princess?"

She could tell he's nervously changing the subject. It's adorable on him. On any other man, she would've probably gotten angry. Shaking her emotions away, the Princess moves in even closer to Merlin, and then laying her hand on his chest. She puts on her seductress act, raising a single brow, puckering her lips just slightly, and giving him her most irresistible, suggestive look. "Have you thought on what I said in the dungeons, Merlin?"

Oh great. "Errr, I have... and-"

"Merlin?"

The manservant thanks all his lucky stars as he turns his head in the direction of the voice. "Gwen!" He smiles widely.

Gwen smiles back as she draws closer. She turns towards the Princess of Ergyng and bows. "Your Grace, how have you been?"

"Very well, thank you." The Princess replies, though she doesn't smile back. She was just about to get an answer from Merlin when the maid interrupted.

Gwen nods before looking at Merlin. "Gaius was looking for you." She says quietly.

"Oh. He has?" The manservant asks curiously. Gwen nods before he turns back to the Princess. Before he could say anything, the Princess smiles at him.

"We'll continue our conversation later. My father wanted to go out for a ride today, and I should probably go meet him now." She smiles at him one last time before taking her leave of the two.

Merlin physically deflates in relief as he turns to Gwen. "Where's Gaius?" He asks.

Gwen shrugs, "No idea."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow. "But didn't you just say he was looking for me?"

Gwen smirks at him, "I lied. I saw the look on your face and thought I'd save you."

At this, the manservant laughs and shakes his head. "Someone has had a bad influence on you." He teases, to which Gwen laughs and blames him.

"Arthur told me you'd been released last night."

Merlin nods. "And no one knows why."

Gwen goes quiet, pursing her lips in that way she does when she's thinking hard.

Merlin looks around quickly before leaning in towards his friend and asking, "Have you seen the Lady Morgana?" He ignores Gwen's grin and continues, "I haven't seen her since I've been free."

Gwen nods, "She's been in her chambers since yesterday evening."

Merlin nods as he begins forming a plan to see her in his head. But he'll need help. Uther is probably watching him like a hawk as they speak. "Gwen, I hate to ask this of you, but... do you think you could help me?"

Gwen rolls her eyes at the man. "Do you even have to ask?" She shakes her head at him and tuts. "Of course I'll help you."

Merlin sighs and nods gratefully at her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now what can I help you with?"

Merlin yet again looks around cautiously before whispering, "I need your help to see Morgana." He waits for Gwen to nod before adding in softly, "tonight."

...

A/N: Up next, the arrival of Lord Borin, Morgana avoids Merlin, and Princess Ophelia makes her first big move on our favorite warlock. Thank you for reading, and please review! I will update ASAP!

-McDiggin'It


	10. Chapter 10

Title: He is Mine

...

A/N: Just wanted to be clear, this fic is AU if some of you haven't figured that out yet. Thought it was obvious. Merlin has NO DESTINY! Meaning he has no obligation to Arthur, other than cleaning his chambers and his stables. Basically, Merlin is just a warlock. Nothing more, nothing less.

-McDiggin'It

...

Chapter Ten:

...

Merlin is anxious and nervous to see the Lady Morgana. He thought she would be one of the first people he would see upon his release, but as it seems, she hasn't left her chambers since yesterday evening. He paces Gaius' chambers as he waits for Gwen. Their plan was simple. Gwen would go out to the stables to stall Princess Ophelia when she gets back from her ride out with her father, while he sneaks up to Morgana's chambers to see her.

The manservant finds it difficult not to spontaneously combust in excitement. Tonight, he would finally see the woman he's almost a hundred percent positive he's falling in love with, and hopefully, if things go well, he'll finally grant her that kiss she'd wanted from him in the dungeons.

He wore his best clothes, and partially doused himself in a bottle of lavender fragrance he found in Gaius' things. He didn't ask why the old physician has a bottle of fragrance in his possession... but now, he's wondering if maybe he used too much. At half past 8, the door to the Physicians chambers swing open, and Merlin looks up to see Gwen poking her head through the door. He goes to her with a questioning look on his face. "Are we set?"

Gwen nods, then quickly makes a face. "Are you wearing... perfume?"

Merlin blushes and looks down at his shirt. "I know. It's too much, isn't it?"

Gwen bites the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. She shakes her head at him. "Just a tad."

Merlin nods and takes a deep breath. His stomach is fluttering, his heart is pounding and his pores are just sobbing out sweat. "Maybe I should change into-"

"Merlin, its fine. You look lovely, you smell _extremely_ lovely, and I'm sure Morgana will be more than glad to see you."

Merlin nods. "Thanks... did you tell her that I'll be coming tonight?"

"No." Gwen shakes her head and smiles. "Thought it'd be best if you surprise her. I'm sure she'll be over the moon to see you."

"You really think so?" Merlin asks with a hopeful look.

Gwen nods and grins widely at him. "I know so. She's been a bit too quiet all day, but I reckon that's because she misses you."

At that, the manservant sighs with relief and nods at his friend with gratitude. "Thank you, Gwen." He takes her hand and squeezes it lightly. "Really. This means a lot to me."

Gwen chuckles and smiles at him. "I know, Merlin." She pulls her hand from his and pulls him towards the door. "Now go. You don't have much time. I'll try to keep Princess Ophelia distracted for as long as I can." With that, she pushes Merlin out the door and up in the direction of Morgana's chambers.

Merlin moves quickly and quietly. A feat he had long since mastered in his childhood days with Will back in Ealdor. They used to sneak out at night to pull pranks on people, or simply to scour the forest on the outskirts of their small village, pretending to be discoverers; though the only things they managed to discover were a lot of trees and animal turds.

The manservant comes to a stop in front of the Lady Morgana's chambers, and he stares at the door for a short moment. His heart is beating so hard, one would think he's about to go to war or something. Raising his fist, he wraps his knuckles softly against the door.

Six seconds pass before he hears the unmistakable sound of a door latch being unlocked. And then it swings open.

...

She knew she would eventually see him. She knew that it was going to hurt like hell when it happens. She knew that it would take all of her strength and willpower to stop herself from throwing her arms around him. And she even knew that seeing him now would be much different from seeing him before. Before, she was not bound to a deal with the King. Now, she has to uphold her side of the bargain. Now, she has to hurt the man she is most afraid of hurting... _nothing_ could've prepared her for this.

She fights every fiber in her body to keep from smiling, hugging, kissing, or even feeling anything for the man who stands in front of her. She wins all except the latter. Her heart threatens to explode as she stares at the manservant with wide eyes. Her hands literally ache to reach out and touch him, so she fists the sides of her sleeping gown. Her skin prickles with the need to feel him touch her, but she stands her ground. "Merlin." She finally manages in a semi-steady voice. "What are you doing here?"

Merlin smiles widely at her, not having a clue what's about to happen He bows his head. "I had to see you, Milady."

Her heart lurches at his words, and she wishes she could tell him the truth of how she had been wishing the exact same thing. But she forces herself not to. Instead, with the difficulty of keeping a straight face, she mutters, "You mustn't be here."

The manservant doesn't think much of her words, thinking it's her way of worrying for their safety. After all, he'd just been released from the dungeons not even a full day ago. "I know," he nods. "But I couldn't wait any longer. I- I couldn't go to bed again tonight without seeing you." He says softly. He looks behind him, making sure no one is around or headed their way before turning back to the Lady Morgana. He wants to reach out and take her hands in his. He wants to pull her into his arms and never let go. He wants to press his lips against hers like he did in his dreams last night, but he must wait like a gentleman for her to allow him.

Morgana's heart, head, and body have an all-out brawl. Her body is screaming for Merlin's touch. Her head is screaming at her to stand her ground and remember her deal with the King. To remember that Merlin's safety is at stake. And her heart is just shattering over and over again, with no end in sight. She has to end whatever was starting between them before she gets him in more trouble. She has to make sure that he stays away. It's hard enough as it is to see him so close and not be able to throw herself into his arms. She must do what's best for the both of them.

"Merlin," she whispers softly as she mentally fights back the tears that are threatening to well up in her eyes and give away her lies. "I- you can't be seen here again."

Merlin nods, "I know, Milady. But I just couldn't stay away for another moment. I had to see you."

Her heart soars and shatters at those words. The words she had been longing to hear since she realized her feelings for him. She shakes her head at him. "No... we- we cannot see each other anymore."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "What?" He looks closely at her, trying to read her expression, but her face remains blank. "What do you mean?"

It hurts so much when she says in the softest of whispers, "I thought I had feelings for you, but... I don't."

The manservant blinks in confusion and shakes his head. His eyes then widen as he looks down at his shirt. "Is it the fragrance? Have I used too much?" he asks warily as he looks up at her with apologetic eyes. "I knew I used too much. I should've changed first, but—,"

"Merlin." Morgana interrupts, shaking her head. She hadn't even noticed the way he smelt of lavender until he mentioned it. She wants to tell him that he smells absolutely lovely, but yet again, she cannot. Instead, she continues down the road of doom she'd chosen. "I'm sorry, but…" _Say it! Just say it and get it over with!_ Her mind screams at her. "I don't want to see you again."

The manservant's chest constricts as he inhales sharply. He stares for a long time before he laughs humorlessly. "What about what you said in the dungeons?" _Had all of what happened in the dungeons been a dream?_

She shakes her head. She has to get him to leave before she breaks down completely in front of him. "I was wrong." Swallowing down the pain of hurting him, she ends it in the only way she knows will work. "You're a servant, and I'm the King's ward... I could never love you." She scoffs at him for good measure, though there's nothing good about any of this. "And I don't ever want to see you again. Not now, not ever."

Merlin's breath catches in his throat as he stares at Morgana. It's like a sword through the heart. A kick to the gut. A slap to the face. And he didn't see it coming. Suddenly, he's not even sure why he's there… something is wrong. Something is off about the way she's looking at him and speaking to him. His jaw clenches as he looks her in the eye. "This isn't you… what— what happened?"

The tears are beginning to form, and she knows it. She looks away from his piercing gaze and fidgets with the sleeve of her sleeping gown. "Nothing… I told you. I don't want to see you."

He couldn't accept that. He needs an explanation. "Why?" he asks shakily, each breath painful to his lungs and his chest. "When I last saw you, I— you said you—,"

"I lied." Morgana whispers furiously to him. Although, her fury is at herself, at Uther, at the oaf she's about to marry. At everyone but the man standing before her. He has done absolutely nothing wrong. And here she is, hurting him in what she knows is the worst way possible. "I lied, Merlin. I cannot be with you, nor can I ever love you." That, is without a doubt, the biggest lie she has ever told anyone in her entire life. It's the most painful lie. The falsest lie, for she knows that she has already fallen deeply in love with him. So much in love, that she's willing to sacrifice her happiness just to keep him safe. "When you leave here tonight, I don't ever want you to come back here. I don't ever want to speak to you, and I don't ever want you to come near me again."

Merlin's face falls and his eyes begin to water. He stares at her, wondering what he'd done. He wants to apologize for whatever has caused her to say those things to him. But it's pretty obvious that she's not feeling very receptive at the moment. He takes a step back as he swallows down the giant lump in the back of his throat. "Morgana, whatever I did— whatever it is I said, I'm- I'm sorry."

"It's not you, Merlin." She says softly. "I just- I don't think I can love a servant." It's a low blow. She knows. But it's the only way for him to really leave her and move on. "If you really care about me," Morgana continues. "You'll do what I say." Her voice is stern as she takes a few steps back. "Please just go." She doesn't wait a moment longer as she firmly shuts her door. The moment the door clicks shut, her body goes numb, her knees turn to jelly, and the most sorrowful of sobs leaves her lips as she slides to the floor and sobs quietly into her hands. The pain, she knows, will never _ever_ go away.

…

It's awfully quiet tonight. The sound of his own footsteps echo loudly in his ears as the manservant turns blindly down the corridor, ignoring the tears in his eyes. He doesn't even see the figure approaching until he runs straight into it. An alarmed scream jars him from Morgana's words playing in a loop in his head. He looks down at the figure in front of him and realizes who he'd just ran into. He backpedals quickly and bows to her. "Princess."

Princess Ophelia immediately noticed his tears and gave him a worried look. "Merlin?" she steps forward, raises her hand and touches his cheek. "Are you alright?"

Merlin turns his head away and quickly wipes his tears with the back of his hand. He nods as he sniffles. "I'm fine, Princess."

The Princess gives a raised eyebrow and wipes a single tear that escapes his eye with her thumb. "I told you to call me by my name."

Merlin looks down at his feet. He really hoped he wouldn't run into anyone tonight. But it seems like the gods really hate him tonight. "I'm sorry." he whispers to the Princess. "It won't happen again."

The Princess then drops her hand, only to wrap it around the manservant's and pulling it until he's forced to follow. They're standing really close now, and Ophelia tries not to show her relief at the fact that he hasn't pulled away yet. Pushing her luck, she raises her hand again, and runs her fingertips down the side of his jaw. "What happened?" she whispers softly.

Merlin shakes his head immediately. "Nothing…" he has no desire to tell the Princess or anyone else of what he'd just had to endure. Not only is it pathetic, but it's painful. So he shrugs and adds in as an afterthought, "Tripped and hit my knee."

She knows he's lying. She knows that the reason he's crying, is because someone had hurt him. She isn't sure she wants to know _who_ hurt him, so she doesn't push him. If he wants to tell her, he'll tell her. If he doesn't, then that's okay… for now though, she wants to be there for him. Nimueh's suggestion of seduction will have to wait until a later time when Merlin is okay. For now, he needs comfort, and that is what she'll give him. Without a word, she nods to him as she pulls his hand down towards her so he has no choice but to bend down. She gives him no warning as she wraps her arms around his neck and pulls his head to lay on her shoulder. It takes a few long moments before she finally feels his shoulders shaking as he sobs silently into her neck. She says nothing, does nothing, but hold him. She doesn't know what he'd just been through, but in her own experience, the only time she had ever sobbed like that, was when she had lost someone she loved deeply.

She slowly moves with him towards the wall until they're both sliding down onto the floor. Merlin pulls away and looks at her with a tearful gaze. "Your dress… it'll get dirty."

She shushes him and shakes her head. "You're in pain, and yet you worry about the state of my dress." she chuckles softly as she caresses his face. "Your wellbeing is more important to me than any dress I own, Merlin."

Merlin blinks and looks down between them. His voice is soft as he whispers, "I don't know why you care for me. I'm just a servant."

Again, she shushes him softly as she wraps her hand around his chin and forces him to look up at her. "You're not just a servant."

Merlin is instantly reminded of Morgana's words to him in the dungeons.

 _I'm just a manservant, Milady—_

 _You're not. If you were, I wouldn't be here, wishing I was in your place instead. If you were just a servant, I wouldn't be here, wishing it was my lips you were kissing and not just my hands._

Lies.

He goes to move away from the Princess, but before he could even move, Princess Ophelia leans forward and presses her lips against his. His breath hitches in the back of his throat as he freezes.

Her lips are soft, her kiss is tentative, as if she worries about his reaction. If this had happened before he went to see Morgana tonight, he would've pulled away immediately. If the Princess had kissed him earlier, he would've probably pushed her away and ran for his life. But right then and there, as his eyelids begin to grow heavy, he has no desire to run, no desire to push her away. He has no desire to do anything. So he sits there with his eyes closed, as his heartbeat slows down in his chest. He does nothing, says nothing, and feels… nothing.

When Princess Ophelia pulls away, she stares at him as her heart rate skyrockets. She had kissed several men in her life, but never like this. She had never kissed a man who is obviously hurting. She had never kissed a man who doesn't kiss her back. She should be offended, but she's not. Instead, she feels grateful that he hadn't outright pushed her away and ran for his life. She watches his face, tracing his boyishly handsome features with her eyes as he slowly opens his eyes again to stare into hers. Before she could say or do anything else, Merlin leans into her again, and this time, _he_ kisses her.

Princess Ophelia's heart soars and lodges itself into her throat as she tilts her head to the side and kisses him back. She knew immediately, that the pain he's going through, is because of a woman. She knows that he's probably only kissing her because he's hurting, but she doesn't care. It feels too good to have him so close to her, kissing her back.

Their kiss is cut short by Merlin himself when he suddenly pulls away and stares at her with wide eyes as he pants heavily. He looks around quickly, then scrambles to his feet, mumbles something about Gaius, and then takes off down the corridor towards the Physicians chambers. She really _should_ be offended, but instead, the Princess feels grateful. She sits back, leaning against the wall as she raises her eyes to the ceiling and smiles to herself. She feels good inside… but at the same time, she feels like she had just lost something. She's not sure what it is, but she has a pretty good guess of what it is.

…

Two days pass by without much excitement in the young warlocks life. He spent the past two days, running around the castle, tending to Arthur's needs, cleaning up guest chambers for the party from Mercia, and making sure that everything is in order for when they arrive.

For once, he's extremely grateful for all the chores and things that keeps him busy throughout the day. He avoids going anywhere near the Lady Morgana's chambers, avoids thinking of her or Princess Ophelia and the kiss they shared, and he changes the subject and runs away whenever Gwen asks about his meeting with the King's ward. It isn't until Gwen threatens to ask Morgana instead, that Merlin finally spills the beans.

Gwen had been shocked by the news, and asked what had happened, to which the manservant shook his head and told her that he's just as confused as she is. Gwen doesn't ask again, now knowing why Merlin has been so quiet as of late. She tells him that Morgana has been acting really odd lately as well, hoping it would somehow lessen whatever pain the manservant is going through, but it doesn't. If anything, it hurts and confuses him even more.

When Lord Borin arrives, he immediately orders Merlin to put his coat away, feed and water his horse, and make sure it's groomed when he takes it out tomorrow on his ride with his betrothed. Merlin had shrugged and did as he was told. Everything went by without a hitch… until the feast commenced that very night, and Merlin entered the Great Hall.

As soon as Merlin saw Morgana, his stomach had fluttered and his heart had started beating rapidly. He watched her from afar as she smiled and talked with several people around her. Merlin tried his best not to stare too much, but it was nearly impossible. He only forced his gaze away from her when Lord Borin himself had found his way to Morgana's side, and wouldn't leave.

Merlin kept himself busy with helping the other servants serve food and wine to the partygoers, and he was doing quite well. Until Uther stood up and cleared his throat loudly to get everyone's attention.

"It is a great pleasure to have you all here in my Kingdom, celebrating the future alliance of Camelot and Ergyng." he begins, his eyes gliding over the crowd.

Merlin blinked when Uther looked right at him and grinned widely.

King Uther continued, turning his attention to the Lady Morgana sitting beside him. "And it is also with great pleasure that I will be announcing, the betrothal of my ward, the beautiful Lady Morgana," he pauses as if for effect. "… to Lord Borin of Mercia."

All the air is sucked out of the room as Merlin's lungs suddenly tighten, and his knees go weak. His arms grow numb, and try as he might, he couldn't keep the platter in his hands from sliding right off his palms and onto the floor with a clang. The sound echoes through the hall, bringing him right back to his senses as he looks up to find everyone looking at him. His eyes, though he tries to keep them from moving towards her, dart straight to the Lady Morgana.

He finds her staring right at him. He couldn't be sure, but for a split second, he thought he saw a flicker of pain in her eyes. But then Lord Borin is there, taking her hand in his, the look is gone, and Merlin is turning away quickly to leave the room.

Uther smiles to himself as he turns his attention back to the crowd. "Let us eat, drink, and be merry!" with that, the feast continues.

Merlin sits on the balcony outside the Great Hall, staring up at the stars. He doesn't care if he gets in trouble for leaving the feast early. He doesn't care if Lord Bloody Boring is looking for him to bloody fill up his bloody goblet. He doesn't even care if Uther himself will punish him for leaving his post. Merlin, just. Doesn't. Care. He sighs heavily as he absentmindedly fiddles with the goblet of wine in his hands.

"It's her, isn't it?" A voice startles the manservant, causing him to jump and nearly fall to his death if it hadn't been for his surprisingly great reflexes. He turns around to find Princess Ophelia standing there with a small jug of wine.

He goes to get up and climb off the balcony, "Princess, I-"

She raises a hand to stop him.

He regards her with a curious look as she hands him the jug in her hands and climbs up on the balcony beside him. She sits down and scoots in closer to him before turning her head to look at him. "The Lady Morgana." She continues. "She's the reason you were hurt the other night."

Merlin doesn't say anything as he turns his eyes back up to the sky. His silence is answer enough.

Princess Ophelia leans over and plucks the goblet from his hands before holding it up to him.

Merlin wordlessly raises the jug and fills up the goblet. He then sets it down on his other side before turning to look at the Princess. She takes a long drink. A _really_ long drink. He watches silently, and couldn't help but wonder aloud, "Why me?"

The Princess hands him the goblet, gesturing for him to drink. He does, draining its remaining contents before wiping his mouth with his sleeve. He looks at her again. "You could choose any man you want… you could even choose Arthur." he shakes his head. "But you asked _me_. Why?

Princess Ophelia smiles at him. "I've been to 4 different kingdoms... the first one was Cornwall. Oddly beautiful if you're into that dark and eerie look. Like their Kingdom, the people are dark and scary as well." She chuckles. "But I did not notice anyone out of the ordinary there." She shrugs. "They were all just the same..." she looks down at her hands and holds up three fingers, "the same went for Caerleon, Elmet, and Mercia."

At that last one, Merlin couldn't resist rolling his eyes.

Ophelia didn't notice as she continued. "None of those great Kingdoms ever meant much to me... and then I arrived in Camelot." She smiles and looks at the manservant again. "I was bored nearly out of my mind, didn't care much for the current conversations going on... but then a clumsy, but quite good looking man tripped and face planted a platter of food." She grins when Merlin's lips begin to quirk up at the corners. "He had blackberry sauce on his face, but I instantly was drawn to him in a way I had never been drawn to anyone."

Merlin inwardly sighs as he stares at the beautiful Princess before him. Had he met her before Morgana, he probably would've fallen instantly for her. But that's a thought for another time.

"The moment he looked at me with those mysteriously bright blue eyes," Princess Ophelia says ever so softly, "I knew I wanted to be with him in Ergyng." She feels bad for lying. She had known his name and what he looked like before she even arrived in Camelot. Nimueh had shown her everything and made sure she was ready to do what she set out to do. So when she saw him, she already knew who he was… but she was in no way, prepared to find out that he is probably the most interesting man she has ever met. She doesn't even know what she wants anymore. All she knows, is that being close to Merlin, makes her feel safe and happy. She says no more as she reaches her hand over to the man beside her and takes his hand.

Merlin looks at her, trying not to think of the Lady Morgana. He should forget about her. He should reconsider Princess Ophelia's offer. There really is nothing left in Camelot for him. It's his home, and always will be. But the biggest reason it ever felt like his home, is now betrothed to another man. She wants nothing to do with him. So he says nothing, except smile at the Princess beside him, and squeezes her hand lightly.

The Princess smiles back at him before leaning her head against his shoulder.

Unbeknownst to them, a woman with dark hair and green eyes, stands a short distance away, watching them with tears in her eyes as her heart breaks all over again.

...

A/N: So much crappy angst. I know! It makes me sad to write this, but it's part of the plot. I'll update asap. Next chapter, Merlin starts spending time with the Princess while Morgana is forced to pretend she loves her new fiancée. Gwen finds out the reason Morgana rejected Merlin, and Nimueh grows impatient. Thanks for reading and please leave your thoughts! Half of the PLOT CREDIT goes to Dinozzo1! Thank you for your suggestion! It's brilliant! Also, I'll be updating "The Bucket List" next!

-McDiggin'It


	11. Chapter 11

Title: He is Mine

Chapter Eleven:

...

When Uther had announced Morgana's betrothal to Lord Borin of Mercia, the first person she sought out with her eyes, was Merlin. It didn't take long, for exactly in that moment, a clang of a platter turned everyone's attention to the right side of the hall. Morgana had almost let slip her pain when she saw the look of shock on Merlin's face. She didn't want him to find out like this, she thought she had more time to perhaps have Arthur tell him the news. But Uther had surprised everyone, including herself.

Lord Borin had then took her hand in his, breaking her stare. When she looked back to Merlin, he was gone. She swallowed her sorrow as she forced a smile at the cheering crowd. Uther had then turned to her and Lord Borin to strike a conversation, and she used the distraction to pull her hand out of Lord Borin's. She mostly glared at Uther and his smug smirk.

She zoned out of the conversation and stared around the room, trying to find the blue eyed manservant, but he was nowhere to be found. The next person she looked for, was Arthur. Thankfully, he isn't too far away, so she stares at him, hoping he would turn around and look at her. After nearly 5 whole minutes, the Prince finally turns and looks right at her.

Morgana throws him a pleading look, mouthing 'save me'. The Prince nods to her before excusing himself away from his Knights, and then makes his way over to them.

"Lord Borin!" Arthur says in a realistically pleasant tone. Only Morgana had noticed the underlining dislike in his voice.

Lord Borin and Uther then turn, striking up a conversation with the Prince. Arthur nods towards Morgana, offering her a tiny smile. She nods back thankfully before

slinking quietly away to look for Merlin. She knows he probably has no desire to speak to her at the moment, but she wants to at least apologize for the way he had to find out the news of her betrothal.

She first makes her way to the back of the hall where most of the servants are currently busy serving food. She doesn't find Merlin, but she does find Gwen. Pulling her maid aside, Morgana whispers hopefully, "Have you seen Merlin?"

Gwen blinks at her and shakes her head. "Last I saw him, he was leaving."

"Where?"

Gwen points towards the double doors. "There." She then looks closely at Morgana and gives her a confused look. "Milady, what's going on between you two?"

The King's ward quickly schools her features into a questioning look. "Nothing." She says quickly.

The maid purses her lips and nods skeptically. "Right... that explains why you're looking for him."

Morgana freezes. "I- I just- I need him to deliver my sleeping draught tonight." She lies.

Gwen stares some more. "But I thought he- I mean- you- you told him that you didn't wish to see him again."

Morgana quickly makes up a lie in her head. She should've known that Merlin would tell Gwen about everything. "I- I did... but I just- I'm having horrible dreams again and I really don't want to go to bed without my sleeping draught."

"Well I could get it for you." Gwen points out.

Morgana shakes her head. "No, it's- it's fine." She forces a smile on her face. "I'll just ask Gaius." She turns quickly and hurries away.

Gwen watches as her friend heads straight for the double doors. Something is wrong with the way Morgana is acting, and she's going to find out what it is.

...

She should've known that Princess Ophelia would jump at the opportunity to comfort Merlin. She should've known that with the pain she's caused him, he would accept comfort from the Princess readily. She should've known that he wasn't going to sit around, pining for her. She finds them sitting side by side, whispering about one thing or another. She couldn't be sure what they're talking about, but she has no desire to hear it anyway. Try as she might, she couldn't swallow the lump forming in the back of her throat. She couldn't keep her body from shaking with silent sobs. She couldn't keep her heart from breaking all over again. She turns and hurries back in through the great hall, heading straight for the side door. She doesn't care when she pushes everyone in her way aside and makes her way up to her chambers.

She kicks off her shoes before moving towards her dresser to find a sleeping gown for herself. She throws the wooden doors open, tear-filled eyes searching for something light and comfortable, but something... a red glow from Ophelia's side of the room, catches her attention. Turning her head, Morgana narrows her eyes at the large chest on the floor. She bites her lip and glances at the door. The Princess probably won't be back until later in the night, so she makes quick work of crossing the room and throwing the chest open. The first thing she sees, is a red velvet cloak, and from beneath it, shines the red glow that caught her eye. She hesitates for a moment before picking up the cloak and moving it aside.

A hand mirror is faced down towards the red glow. She reaches for its handle, picking it up, and then realizes that the glow is not coming from beneath the mirror, but from inside it. She turns the object around in her hands, and finally gets her first look, not at her reflection, but the projection of someone else. A woman with pale skin, ruby red lips, light blue eyes, and dirty blonde hair. The woman notices her almost immediately, her eyes widen in shock, and without a single word, waves her hand quickly in front of her, and disappears from the mirror, taking with her the red glow that surrounded the object.

Morgana blinks rapidly, turning and shaking the mirror in her hands, but all that is left is the reflection of her confused expression.

She comes to one conclusion, and one conclusion alone for what she had just seen. Princess Ophelia is dabbling in Sorcery, and Merlin is quite possibly in danger.

She goes to bed early that night, determined to get an early head start on the morrow to find out where Princess Ophelia had been disappearing off to in the early hours. She's always known that the Princess leaves early, but she simply thought it was some sort of odd custom from Ergyng. She also had no real care for what the Princess does. But after what she'd seen, the King's ward is confident that wherever the Princess goes to in the mornings, has something to do with the woman in the mirror.

As she begins to doze off, the light sound of a knock pulls her right back into the land of the living. Morgana sighs tiredly as she slips out of bed and pads across her chambers towards the door. She notices that Princess Ophelia's bed is still empty, and shrugs mentally as she pulls the door open.

Morgana's eyebrows furrow in confusion when she finds absolutely no one at the door. Shaking her head, she bites her lip and peeks out the door towards the staircase and as far as her vision allows... nothing. Huffing in annoyance, she takes a step back and is about to slam the door closed, but she notices something on the floor, right outside her door.

A potion.

She picks it up, and immediately knew what it was. The usual sleeping draught made by Gaius. She looks outside again, wondering who had delivered it. Ultimately, she decides that it was Gwen's doing. She'd been the only one she mentioned the need for a sleeping draught to tonight... but then why didn't she stay?

Shrugging mentally to herself, the Lady Morgana steps back and shuts her door.

Under the staircase just outside her chambers, a blue-eyed manservant steps out of the shadows and looks up at the familiar closed door. He sighs quietly as he makes his way back down to his shared chambers with Gaius.

...

In the early hours of the morning, Morgana pretends to still be asleep when she hears Princess Ophelia moving around quietly in the room. She doesn't know what time the Princess came back from the feast, but she doesn't really dwell on it, knowing full well who was with the Princess.

Although she has pushed Merlin away, she still can't help but long for him. She longs to see him and smile at him. She longs to touch him and kiss him. She longs to love him freely. But since she cannot do any of those things, all she can do is protect him. She's protecting him now from Uther, and she has a strong feeling that she'll have to protect him as well from Princess Ophelia.

The door opens and closes quickly, clicking shut. Morgana keeps her eyes closed and counts to five before scrambling out of bed, pulling one of her cloaks from her dresser, and then opening her chamber doors slowly. She peeks outside, managing to catch sight of a sliver of blonde hair over a red cloak before it disappears completely down the corridor.

The Kings ward moves quietly and quickly, following the Princess of Ergyng down the stairs and even further down the corridor. She ducks behind pillars, vines, walls, and corners to keep from being discovered. The tail continues up towards the East tower, which baffles Morgana. That is, until she realized that she hadn't seen a single person on the way there. Interestingly enough, Princess Ophelia continues farther up the tower while Morgana keeps herself hidden in a row of vines. She waits a short while before quietly making her way up the tower.

She hadn't even reached the top when she hears the unmistakable voice of Princess Ophelia speaking to someone... a woman.

"What do you mean we've been discovered?" Princess Ophelia's voice echoes through the room.

Morgana ducks behind a pillar by the doorway and eavesdrops.

"The King's ward!" The other voice bellows angrily. Morgana bites her lip. Princess Ophelia is probably speaking to whoever was in that mirror last night. "You weren't there when I activated the link, and she found the mirror!"

Silence.

"Where were you?"

"I- I was with Merlin."

"And you didn't think to lock your chest?" The woman asks scathingly.

Princess Ophelia says grudgingly, "I didn't think you'd link through! If you hadn't, she never would've known!"

"Oh don't you dare turn this on me!"

Morgana listened confusedly. Were they sisters or something?

"It doesn't matter." Princess Ophelia suddenly says. "She's no longer a threat to the mission."

Morgana's interest peaks at this, and she leans in towards the door.

"What do you mean?"

There's a pause before Princess Ophelia continues, with an oddly chipper tone. "I'm pretty sure Merlin is falling in love with me."

Morgana nearly gasps out loud, but she's quick to bite it back before it could escape her lips.

"Oh?" The other woman says in in interest. "How so?"

There seemed to be no hesitation in Princess Ophelia's voice as she replies, "Last night... he told me that he wants to get to know me better. Not as a Princess, but as a person."

Morgana's jaw clenches as she tries not to let the words break her. She's quickly distracted from those thoughts at the next words from the woman in the mirror.

"It's no matter. If you do not eliminate the King's ward, and soon, she will end up telling Merlin or someone of our plan."

Silence.

Morgana tries not to breathe so loudly, but it's nearly impossible. _Are they really plotting to kill me?_

"Princess Ophelia."

"What?"

"You mustn't forget why you're there. Getting Merlin to Ergyng is your top priority. You have but a week left to convince him, but that will not happen if you do not eliminate the King's ward."

"I know… I— I'll take care of it."

The Lady Morgana's jaw tightens. _What exactly do they want with Merlin? And who is that evil woman in the mirror? And what does she mean she's going to take care of it?_ she wonders to herself as she presses her ear closer against the wall. However, she hears the sound of chanting in Princess Ophelia's voice, which probably means that their conversation is over, and that means she has less than 2 minutes to get back to the bottom of the tower. Gathering up her cloak, the green-eyed woman hurries quietly back down the staircase.

Despite still not knowing what Princess Ophelia and the woman in the mirror want with Merlin, she's found out two things. She was right about Princess Ophelia having ulterior motives in wanting to marry Merlin, _and_... the Princess has magic.

…

When Morgana makes it back to her chambers, she's greeted by Gwen's smile from the doorway of her bath chambers. "Good morning, Milady. I didn't know where you'd gone when I arrived, so I took the liberty of drawing your bath so it'd be nice and warm by the time you came back."

Morgana smiles gratefully at her friend as she shrugs out of her cloak. "Thank you, Gwen. And… should anyone ask, I never left my chambers this morning." she says quietly.

Gwen nods wordlessly, which is odd. She would usually proceed to ask where she'd been. Morgana watches her as she goes about the room, gathering bed sheets and used dresses and gowns into a small hamper. "Enjoy your bath, Milady. I'll be back with your breakfast soon." she goes to leave, but Morgana stops her by calling her name. "Yes, Milady?" Gwen asks in her usual soft tone, but her gaze is averted to the floor and her body language is tense.

"There's something bothering you." Morgana says confidently. "What is it?"

Gwen says nothing, but she does make eye contact with her friend. Her gaze is confused.

"Gwen, you know you can tell me anything. Ask me anything."

Finally, the maid sighs heavily and her shoulders slump as she looks Morgana directly in the eye. "It's Merlin." Morgana immediately regrets ever asking. She should've just shut her mouth and took her bath in silence. Her pain and sorrow at hearing Merlin's name must've shown through, for Gwen's next words were, "I know you still have feelings for him."

"I— I do not." She denies quickly.

"Morgana," Gwen says in a stern tone. "I've known you since we were both 10 years old. I've been by your side for just as long, and I've seen every reaction, every smile, every frown, every emotion you've ever shown… but in all these years, I've never seen you look so distraught, confused, and broken. You do not openly show it, but I see it in your eyes. I feel it coming off of you in waves. And I know you weren't looking for a sleeping draught last night when you asked me about Merlin's whereabouts."

Morgana stares, her mouth slightly open. It takes a few moments for her to finally react, but when she does, it feels like such a relief to not have to hide how she truly feels. She practically deflates into her bed as she sits down at the foot of it. Tears immediately collect and well up in her eyes, and her lips tremble as she looks up at her friend. Gwen crosses the room wordlessly and wraps her up in a comforting embrace.

"Why did you push him away?" Gwen asks softly into her hair as she rubs soothing circles across her back.

Morgana sniffles, resisting the urge to wail out her reply. Instead, she whispers it. "I didn't want to… by the gods I wish I didn't have to, but… it needed to be done."

"Why?" Gwen asks in confusion.

"I— I made a deal with Uther."

As soon as the King's name left Morgana's lips, Gwen knew exactly what had happened. "You offered yourself to marry the man of his choosing, in exchange for Merlin's freedom and safety."

Morgana nods and lets out a tiny sob, her shoulders shaking as she presses her hands into her face. "I couldn't bear to see him hurt or imprisoned, Gwen."

The maid nods and smiles sadly as she pulls away to look at her friend. "Do you love him?"

There's a long silence as Morgana stares up at her friend through her tears. She doesn't even have to think about the answer to that question. It's as easy to answer as existing. "Do you breathe?" she asks her friend.

Gwen smiles at her friends answer. She decides that the woman deserves a break, if only for a moment. "He feels the same way, you know?"

Morgana shakes her head as she sniffles. "I don't think he does... not anymore."

"Why do you say that?"

"He didn't hesitate to run into Princess Ophelia's arms." She couldn't help but say bitterly.

Gwen snorts, "Well you can hardly blame him. You not only tore his heart out, trampled on it, and threw it down the stairs outside your chambers, but he also had to find out about your betrothal to another man, in a public announcement from the King of all people. He'd be an idiot to not run to the nearest comforting thing he finds." Morgana's face falls at that, and Gwen continues. "But… it doesn't mean he stopped loving you."

"How can you know that?"

Gwen shrugs, "When I mentioned that you'd been having trouble sleeping again, he didn't think twice about leaving Princess Ophelia to go and nag Gaius about making a draught for you, before delivering it right to your chambers last night."

Morgana stares unblinkingly at Gwen. "Wait… you— what— Merlin was the one who delivered the potion last night?"

Gwen smiles, "That's what he told me this morning."

"You…" Morgana trails off, bites her lip and averts her gaze to her lap. "You spoke to him today?" she asks shyly.

Gwen couldn't help but chuckle. "Yes. Arthur had a few errands for him to run, but I managed to get a few answers from him before I came up here."

Morgana looks up again, a small, sad smile on her face. "How is… I mean— is he okay?"

Gwen shrugs, "He's heartbroken… but he's Merlin and we both know that he hardly ever shows sadness, even if it's eating away at him."

Morgana nods sadly. "I've hurt him in the worst way possible." She shakes her head as more tears collect in her eyes. "There's no coming back from what I did to him."

Gwen sighs as she looks at her friend pitifully. "There's always another way to do things, Morgana."

The King's ward looks up at her maid and asks, "What are you saying?"

Gwen takes her hands in hers and with a confident look says, "I'm saying that there's another way for you to protect Merlin. You can change all of this without having to marry a man you'll never love."

"But how?"

"It's simple." Gwen says softly. "You tell the King you're not marrying Lord Borin."

"Are you mad?" Morgana immediately shakes her head. "No. He will have Merlin executed the moment I withdraw from my betrothal. He's told me as much!"

"But has he told you that Lord Borin is a thief?"

Morgana blinks confusedly at her friend. "What?"

Gwen grins widely and looks around behind her before continuing. "While everyone was drinking and being merry last night, I was forced to serve wine to Lord Borin since Merlin left the hall."

"And?"

"And I overheard him asking two of his men if they'd gotten a hold of the vault key yet. I'm assuming he was referring to the key to the King's vault. His men had confirmed that they did, and then Lord Borin had seen me looking at them. I left before he could catch on that I'd been eavesdropping."

"Wait." Morgana shakes her head. "So you think Lord Borin is trying to steal something from Uther's vault?"

Gwen nods. "Exactly."

"Why didn't you tell someone last night?"

Gwen rolls her eyes at that. "Like who? Uther?"

"I don't see why not." Morgana replies.

"It's my word against Lord Borin's. Who do you think Uther's going to believe?"

Morgana bites her lip, knowing her friend is right. After several moments of utter silence, she finally looks up at Gwen again. "Arthur. He could help us. He would believe you and he would help us expose Lord Borin."

Gwen nods, "He could... but we also need someone to do the work that the Prince cannot. Someone who's good at finding things, and is trustworthy."

Morgana knew exactly who Gwen was referring to. She shakes her head. "We cannot involve Merlin in this. He could get caught, and then Uther will surely have his head if Lord Borin doesn't have it first."

Gwen huffs, "Milady, name one person who isn't Arthur or Merlin that you trust."

Morgana shrugs, "Gaius?"

The maid frowns, "I can hardly see Gaius running around eavesdropping and spying on people."

Morgana huffs, "What if Merlin gets caught?"

"He won't."

"How do you know that?"

"Because he's Merlin."

"That's not good enough! If he gets caught, the consequences can be-"

"Morgana!" Gwen says loudly. She shakes her head at the woman and gives her a sympathetic look. "I see now why you made that deal with Uther." She smiles lovingly at her friend. "You're terrified of ever seeing Merlin get hurt, aren't you?"

Morgana nods slowly. "I have nightmares about it... it started a few days ago, and each time is worst than the last. Each time is more realistic than the last. Each time feels too real." She sniffles. "I can't see him get hurt or worse, Gwen... I made a choice between seeing him hurt emotionally and seeing him hurt physically... I couldn't even stomach the thought of the latter."

Gwen nods understandingly and says sheepishly, "I have to admit, when I finally forced the truth out of Merlin, I was upset with you... but I knew something wasn't right because just a few days ago, you wouldn't stop talking about him and how you were going to fight for him." She smiles. "And you still are, just not in the way you originally planned."

Morgana nods. "It was the only way I could keep him safe from harm."

Gwen shakes her head. "There's always another way." With that, she excuses herself and leaves to take the laundry away and fetch Morgana's breakfast.

Morgana is left to ponder on Gwen's parting words.

…

Morgana tries not to gag when Lord Borin takes her hand in his and pulls her along the corridor.

"I wish to take you horseback riding." He says with a large smile.

She forces a smile on her face and let's him continue to drag her towards the stables. "Of course... if that is what you wish."

He believes her feigned enthusiasm to spend time with him and pulls her close into his side. "It is, my future wife."

Her gag reflexes nearly malfunction as she tries to keep from upchucking the contents of her stomach.

She says nothing as they begin to ride out into the forest. It takes a little over a half hour before they're back, Morgana having complained about not feeling well. Lord Borin had not looked pleased, but she had not cared about pleasing him.

As she dismounted her horse, Lord Borin had done the same, and then smiled at her in a way that told her that he knew something she didn't. She didn't like that.

"May I walk you to your chambers?"

"Oh, that's not necessary, Milord. I-"

"There is something I wish to discuss with you." He cuts her off quite rudely.

She bites back her witty retort and nods to him. "Of course... I suppose it is okay then."

He grins at her and nods, without warning, pulling her to his side as he begins up towards the castle. "I'm not sure if King Uther has told you, but I've received word that Mercia is currently in the middle of a crisis. My King has fallen ill and he has summoned me back."

A sliver of hope fills Morgana as she puts on a false look of disappointment. "Does that mean you will be leaving soon?" She hides her hopefulness well.

Lord Borin nods and smiles at her. "I will be leaving here in three days time."

Morgana's heart swells in joy. _Is he going to call off the wedding then?_ "So... what does that mean for us?"

He takes her hands in his and pulls her close. "With Uther's permission, I would like to change the date of our wedding."

"Change?" Her hopes deflate. "Errr, when did you have in mind?"

"In two days."

Morgana's act drops altogether as she pulls her hands out of Lord Borin's grasp and glares at him. "Two days?!" She bellows as she stares at him as though he'd sprouted another head. "We- we can't get married in two days!"

Lord Borin is taken aback by her reaction. "Why not? Is this not what you want?"

Thoughts of Merlin fills Morgana's brain, and her heart breaks even further. He would be devastated. She certainly is. She swallows the lump in the back of her throat and stares at Lord Borin. "I- we shouldn't rush a marriage, Milord." She says quickly. "It's a sacred thing. An oath. And what will happen when you leave? Am I to wait here alone while you're away?" She tries for a more empathetic approach.

Lord Borin smiles widely at her, and Morgana immediately regrets saying anything. "Of course not, my future wife... Uther agreed that after we get married in two days, you would journey with me to Mercia."

The whole world spins as the air is suddenly sucked out of the Lady Morgana's lungs. It didn't take a full moment before she's watching the ground rushing up to meet her.

...

A/N: So sorry for the late update. Been away from my computer for a few weeks. But I'm back now! Will be updating as soon as possible! Let me know what you guys think of this chapter, and I might have a new fic coming up!

-McDiggin'It


	12. Chapter 12

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Twelve:

...

It's fairly early when one of Lord Borin's men informs Merlin that the man himself needs to have his horse looked over one more time before he sets out on a ride with the Lady Morgana. Merlin hurries to the stables, not wanting to spend anymore time than he needs, watching Morgana with that horrible excuse of a Lord.

The manservant makes quick work of checking the saddle, the reigns, and the hooves on Lord Borin's horse, before quickly looking over Morgana's horse as well. Once he was sure that everything was okay with the horses, he slinks quickly away after letting the new stable boy know that he would be back later to help him unsaddle and groom the horses when Lord Borin and Lady Morgana come back from their ride.

Merlin spends the next half hour, re-polishing Arthur's armor, in which the Prince notices almost immediately.

"Are you polishing my armor again?" Arthur asks as he passes by his manservant.

Merlin doesn't look up from the armor and merely shrugs.

Arthur frowns and folds his arms across his chest as he continues to watch Merlin try and polish a tiny smudge on his breast plate. "Merlin."

"Yes, Sire?" Merlin asks without looking up.

"Merlin."

"I said, 'Yes, Sire'."

"Merlin!" Arthur calls in annoyance.

The manservant finally glances at the Prince with a blank expression. His jaw clenches as he drops the polishing cloth in his hands onto the table and sighs. "What would you like, Arthur?" He asks through gritted teeth. It has been a crappy few days for him, and he's really not in the mood for Arthur's extra chores and errands.

"Why are you polishing my armor again?" The Prince asks sternly.

Merlin rolls his eyes at that. "I thought you'd be a little more appreciative of the extra effort I'm putting into polishing your beloved armor, Arthur." his tone is heavy on the sarcasm.

Arthur rolls his eyes back and sighs heavily as he drops into the seat across from his manservants. "Does this have something to do with the Lady Morgana?"

The manservant is initially quiet before he quickly scoffs and looks at Arthur in false bewilderment. "What? Why would this have anything to do with her? She didn't make me do anything!"

"Merlin…"

"She's way above me and I don't even speak to her, and…"

"Merlin—,"

"…and why would she even care about me or what I do, or that your armor is filthy, and maybe I just really like polishing armor, and—,"

"MERLIN!" Arthur shouts at his manservant and glares at him for good measure.

Merlin goes quiet as he stares at the Prince.

Arthur sighs and shakes his head at his manservant. "I know what happened, I know what Morgana did, and I know that you think that she hates you or something… I also know that you have affections for her."

Merlin couldn't think of what to say. He could lie, but he's too tired to even try. He could just walk out of Arthur's chambers, but he'll just end up in the same place when he returns. Or he could just admit defeat and tell Arthur the truth. He sighs and sits back in his seat. "You're right."

"Of course I am." Arthur replies cheekily.

Merlin glares at him. "I'm trying to be honest here."

The Prince nods. "Good. That's a start."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The manservant asks, slightly offended.

The Prince rolls his eyes and raises his hands in mock surrender. "It means that I've known you for a while now, and in all the months that I've known you, I've never seen you so… down and depressed."

Merlin scoffs, "That's not true."

"Which part?"

"All of it! Princess Ophelia has been great company, and… and I really like her. She makes me smile…"

"But?" Arthur asks curiously.

"But what?" The manservant asks in annoyance. "There's no but."

At that, the Prince actually laughs. "There's always a but, Merlin."

"But nothing, Arthur." Merlin says through gritted teeth. He hates that the Prince is actually right. He hates that the Prince can see right through him when it comes to his problems. He hates that despite his efforts to be happy and to try and move on, they're completely useless when he even _hears_ Morgana's name.

"But something." Arthur deadpans a few moments later.

Merlin suddenly snaps out of his seat and throws his chair back. "Damn it, Arthur!" he yells. "I'm trying, okay?!"

Arthur remains calm and collected as he watches his manservant. He'll never admit it, but he really hates seeing Merlin moping and sulking around. He is not only his servant, but also one of his most loyal and trusted friends. So if there is anything he can do to lessen some of his friend's burden, he'll do it in a heartbeat. "Trying to what?" he asks a little softly.

Merlin had promised himself a long time ago that he would never cry in front of another man, and especially not Arthur. But try as he might, he could not keep his tears at bay. He angrily swipes at them as they well up in his eyes and threaten to fall onto his cheeks. "You wouldn't understand." he mutters.

Arthur suddenly gets out of his seat as well and moves towards his friend. "Try me." He says kindly, softly. "You'd be surprised."

It is then that Merlin finally breaks down completely. He falls into the next seat closest to him and unleashes the truth to Arthur. He spills about his growing feelings for the Lady Morgana, he spills about the promises they made, the relationship he thought they were going to build, and he spills about the way Morgana just dismissed him as if he were an unimportant piece of garbage stuck to the bottom of her shoe. He holds nothing back as he presses his fists over his eyes in an attempt to stem the flow of tears from them, but it's utterly useless.

Arthur lets him finish before he finally sits down again and leans his elbows onto the table between them. He waits a few minutes before finally saying, "It's okay, Merlin… It's okay to be hurt, and to feel like nothing is ever going to be okay." he shrugs to himself, "I can't promise that it'll feel okay anytime soon, or that things will ever go the way you want them to, but I can promise you that with time, _you_ will be okay. If nothing else happens between you and Morgana, it's not because there's something wrong with you, but rather, something is wrong with our system and standards."

Merlin pulls his hands away from his face to look at the Prince questioningly. "What do you mean?"

Arthur sighs heavily as he leans back and looks at his manservant. "I've been thinking about our customs for a few days now, and… it still feels odd to say it out loud, but… I really believe that this is wrong."

"What is?"

Arthur gestures to him. "Ranks… I mean, of course there should always be a council and a King, but… outside of that, people should be allowed to be with whoever they want to be with." he suddenly looks down at his hands as he fidgets with them. "You, the Lady Morgana, and Gwen have shown me that. You've shown me that love is not something you choose, it's something you feel." he looks up from his hands and smiles softly at his manservant. "It's something you feel for someone because of who they are as a person, not who they are as a title or a status."

Merlin blinks rapidly as he stares at Arthur. He leans forward and squints at the Prince. "You've got to be an impostor."

Arthur glares. "I'm trying to help you-"

"Impostor!" Merlin jumps and points at him.

Arthur glares some more. "Shut up, Merlin."

Merlin sighs and shakes his head. "You can't help me, Arthur." He says seriously. "I appreciate you trying, but... Morgana made it very clear how she feels about me."

"Merlin, she-"

"I have to be at the stables to help the new stable boy with the horses, Sire." With that, Merlin leaves quickly before Arthur could figure out that he's the one who tells Merlin what to do and not the other way around.

...

He stands a fair distance away as he watches Lord Borin and the Lady Morgana dismount their horses before walking up towards the castle. Merlin sighs, ignoring the pang in his chest as he watches her walk beside him. Despite the pain of watching her from afar, he couldn't keep his eyes away from her. He begins towards the stables, biding his time so that he wouldn't be noticed by Lord Borin and Lady Morgana. His eyes stay on Morgana's back, his heart yearning for more of her beauty.

Just as he reaches the edge of the stables, he sees Morgana stop and turn towards Lord Borin with a fearful look on her face. Merlin stops too, eyes narrowing as he tries to read her expression.

A panicked look crosses over her face and her chest heaves with heavy breathing. Merlin's stomach drops when Morgana suddenly falls, hitting the ground quickly. He doesn't know what comes over him as he forgets Morgana's warnings to stay away from her and keep his distance. He breaks into a full on sprint up the hill and towards her. He watches as Lord Borin gets down and leans over her just as he finally reaches her.

He forgets his place as he drops to his knees beside her, takes her hand in his and pulls her across his lap. Ignoring Lord Borin's demand for him to step aside, he presses his pointer and middle finger against Morgana's neck, feeling for a pulse.

"What are you doing?" Lord Borin asks incredulously.

Merlin glares at him. "I'm the royal Physician's apprentice." He barks at the man before looking down at Morgana's face. She's pale, but he can feel her pulse. His wild guess is that her heavy breathing caused a shortness of breath and oxygen wasn't reaching her brain. Looking up at Lord Borin, he tells him, "I have to get her to Gaius."

"What?"

"The Physician." The manservant almost rolls his eyes as he slips his arm under Morgana's back, and the other under her knees. She's surprisingly extremely light when he picks her up and walks away without a word. Lord Borin can follow him if he'd like, but Merlin decides that he doesn't want to be near the man, so he whispers an incantation under his breath that renders him immobile until he is released from the spell.

When he lays her down onto the cot in Gaius' chambers, he takes a step back and stares at her for a few moments. He knows that Gaius is at the market for the next hour, so that gives him enough time to be alone with Morgana for what could possibly be the last time ever. He smiles to himself as he covers her with a thick blanket before sitting down in the chair beside the cot. He takes a wash cloth from one of the fresh ones on the table and dips it into a bowl of water before wringing it out and placing it over Morgana's forehead.

Merlin sits back and sighs as he gently takes Morgana's hand in his. It literally hurts him to see her like this, but then again, he's almost glad for it because this may be the only way for him to be near her. A bit creepy, but it's all he can do... he had given Princess Ophelia's offer a lot of thought for the past few nights, and he has decided in what to do.

He can't stay here and watch the woman he loves, marry another man. He just can't. It hurts too much already, and if he has to actually witness them being together, he's not sure he'll be able to bear that. So he sits silently and watches Morgana's peaceful face as he holds her hand in his. Merlin sighs as he thinks back to the love they never shared. The kiss that was promised but never kept. All things he wanted to say to her. Glancing up at her eyes, he decides that this will be the last chance he has to tell her how he really feels. And so, he begins in a soft whisper.

"To be honest, before you told me the truth of how you felt about me, I wasn't sure if I was truly in love with you." he pauses to smile sadly, imagining that she were awake and that she actually had fond affections for him. "And it took you hurting me for me to realize that I had fallen in love with you a long time ago… before the countless alliances between Camelot and the Northern Kingdoms, before the arrival of King Athrwys and Princess Ophelia, even before I officially met you." he chuckles softly to himself and shakes his head. "I remember how…" he trails off and looks down at her small and smooth hand in his large and rough one. "…how my heart raced when I saw you up close for the first time." he looks up at her peaceful face and smiles again as he recalls the day he saw her in her chambers when Gaius first sent him to deliver her the sleeping draught he made. "You were changing that day, and you thought I was Gwen." he shakes his head as he conjures up the emotions he felt that day. "I felt like the luckiest man in the world to be in your presence. To see you up close, to smell the sweet scent of your fragrance." he could smell it even then, but that's probably because she's wearing the same fragrance as that day. "… to hear your voice." he tears his gaze away and sniffles lightly as tears begin to well up in his eyes. He wipes them away quickly with his free hand.

Merlin takes the wet cloth from her forehead and dips it into the bowl of water again before wringing it out a second time and placing it back onto her forehead. He continues in his soft voice. "I've had affections for you from that day on, and I've… I've fallen deeper and deeper in love with you everyday since." He shakes his head, despite knowing that she can't actually see him nor hear him. "I really wish I was stronger and braver, but I'm not. I can't… I can't watch you be with him, marry him, and love him. I can't keep avoiding you and staying away from you." he scoffs at himself and shakes his head again. "I'm a coward." he looks up at Morgana's face, and for a single moment, he thinks he sees her lips tremble. He leans forward and raises his hand to touch her cheek. "I'm going to accept Princess Ophelia's proposal tonight, Morgana." his eyes trace over her beautiful and elegant features. "… I keep telling myself that I'm doing it because I actually want to be with her, but… that's a lie." Merlin closes his eyes as he leans down further and presses his forehead against Morgana's cloth-covered one. "I'm choosing her because I cannot stop myself from loving you so much, and I fear that if I stay, I may not be able to control myself around you."

The sound of the door swinging open startles the manservant, and he quickly gets up, pretending to be looking for something.

"Merlin?" Gaius' curious voice floats over from the door.

Merlin turns around to face the elderly man with an awkward smile. "Gaius!"

Gaius looks behind him towards the Lady Morgana and asks, "What's happened?" he drops his things onto the table by the door before hurrying over to Morgana's side. Taking her wrist in his hand, he checks for a pulse before moving up to feel the temperature of her forehead, as well as check up on other things that Merlin couldn't care to pay attention to.

Merlin stands off to the side and watches the Physician do his work. "She collapsed earlier after coming back from her ride with Lord Boring."

"Ah, probably dismounted too quickly." The physician concludes. "Her temperature seems fine as well as her skin tone and heart rate." He looks up at his ward. "I reckon this has more to do with her lack of sleep than anything else."

Merlin nods, "Yes, I suppose you're right. Can't imagine she'd fainted from spending too much time with Lord Borin." He could help but add bitterly.

Gaius quirks an eyebrow at his ward before saying, "I was on my way here when I saw him standing outside the castle looking as blank as ever."

At that, Merlin's eyes widen into saucers, remembering that he hadn't released Lord Borin from the spell. "Errrr, yeah. I think he was… looking for something."

Gaius doesn't respond, but he shrugs as he continues moving fluidly around his chambers, putting together herbs and liquids to form a remedy.

Merlin takes the chance to escape before Morgana wakes up. "I just remembered that Arthur wanted me to errrrr… muck out the stables, so I'm just going to go." the words are barely out of his mouth before he's shooting for the door. He wishes he could stay around for when Morgana awakes, but that's probably not a good idea, so he leaves quickly, heading for where he left Lord Borin last… but… Merlin grins to himself as he first makes his way towards the servant's quarters. He's sure Lord Borin will be okay for another hour or so. Meanwhile, he has something to discuss with Gwen. He wishes to tell her of his plan to accept Princess Ophelia's offer, and see what she has to say to his decision.

…

The old Physician is just beginning to relax when a soft whimpering sound startles him. Turning his head towards the still unconscious Lady Morgana, the Physician gets up to make his way over to her, but he is quickly stopped by her crying out in despair. He turns quickly towards his chest of emergency potions, searching for the one he has been making particularly for Morgana's growing nightmares.

The elderly man manages to find the potion, quickly pulling the stopper out and making his way over to the King's ward. However, before he could pour the contents of the vial into Morgana's mouth, she cries out again, but this time crying out a name he never thought he'd ever have to hear from the lips of the Lady Morgana.

Merlin.

After making sure that the Lady Morgana was comfortable and void of nightmares, the physician sets himself down and ponders exactly why the King's ward had called out his wards name. Surely there's nothing going on between the two…. _no. That's absurd!… but then why would she call out Merlin's name?_ Utterly baffled, the elderly man decides to just get back to making the remedies he had promised to his patients from earlier.

In the Servant's quarters, Merlin waits patiently for Gwen, knowing that she's probably out in the laundry room or in the kitchen. He knows that she usually eats her lunch with all the other servants, so she will probably show up there for her lunch.

The manservant smiles to himself when he sees the familiar curly brown locks of one of his best friends, emerging from the main entrance of the servant's quarters. He gets up and waves to her, gesturing for her to make her way over to him before he pulls up a chair for her at his table.

"Hey, Gwen." he greets softly, earning him a fond smile from the girl.

Gwen shakes her head and chuckles lightly as she plops down on the chair beside his. "I'm so glad to see you." she mumbles to him.

Merlin nods, "Understandable. It has been quite a boring day without me, I'm sure."

"Yes." Gwen laughs, rolling her eyes at him and playfully pushing his shoulder. "What would I do without you?" She asks playfully.

Merlin's smile drops at that as he looks down at his lap. "I'm sure you'll be fine without me." He says quietly.

Gwen notices the look on his face and leans towards him with a curious look. "Merlin?"

The manservant sighs and looks up at her with a sad expression on his face. "I have to tell you something."

The maid cocks her head to the side and regards her friend with a questioning look. "What is it?" She asks.

Taking a deep breath, Merlin decides that it's best not to beat around the bush. "Princess Ophelia has... offered me an alternative."

At this, Gwen's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "An alternative to what?"

Merlin looks away as he mutters, "To staying here."

Try as she might, Gwen couldn't stop herself from gasping out loud. "What?"

Merlin sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "She... I have no idea why, but she wants to be with me. In Ergyng."

"Merlin, you- you can't!"

The manservant huffs, "Gwen, I wish more than anything that I could stay here with you, and Arthur, and Gaius, but-"

"But you can't stay here without Morgana." Gwen finishes, realizing quickly why her friend is choosing to go to Ergyng.

Merlin nods silently.

Gwen suddenly turns fully in her seat and shakes her head at her friend. "But you still can't leave, Merlin. Not yet, at least."

"But I-"

"Morgana needs you... errr, your help."

Merlin blinks confusedly. "For what?"

Gwen looks around quickly, checking for eavesdroppers before leaning in and whispering about her earlier discussion with Morgana about Lord Borin and his men. When she's done, she's relieved to see the wide-eyed, adventurous look on Merlin's face. The same look he would get at the mention of Morgana. "So will you help us expose him to King Uther?"

Merlin bites his lip and thinks for a long moment. Or at least, pretends to think. He knew the answer to that question the moment Gwen told him that Morgana needs his help. He looks at his friend and smiles. "When have I ever let you down, Gwen?"

...

The first thing she notices when she opens her eyes, is the fact that there's something wet laying over her forehead. The second thing she notices, is that the ceiling she's staring at, isn't hers. The third thing she notices, is the sound of glasses clinking from somewhere to her right. Sitting up slowly, Morgana reaches for the cloth o her forehead and pulls it off before placing it on the table by the cot she's apparently on. She looks over towards the sound to see Gaius leaning over his potions, looking for something.

Furrowing her eyebrows, the King's ward looks around for a moment, and realizes that she's in the Physician's chambers. The physician who lives with a certain manservant she's been both terrified and yearning to see for the past couple of days.

Quickly noting that he wasn't in the room, she calls out to the only other person in the room. "Gaius?"

The elderly man turns and smiles at her. "Ah! You're awake. I was beginning to wonder if you'd have to stay the night."

Morgana's eyebrows furrow even more as she tries to remember why she's even there. "What happened?" She asks curiously.

Gaius walks over to her and hands her a small vial of bluish liquid. "Drink this and I'll explain."

She does as she's told, wrinkling her nose at the bitter taste of whatever that was. "How did I get here?"

The Physician sits down and takes the vial from her before handing another larger vial to her, full of clear liquid. At Morgana's hesitation to drink it, he assures her, "It's water." Before launching into an explanation of how and why she's there. "When I came back from the market about two hours ago, you were unconscious on this cot, and Merlin was tending to you. I assume he's also the one who brought you here after you fainted outside the castle after your ride with Lord Borin."

Almost immediately, her conversation with Lord Borin comes back in full force and threatens to make her sick. She knocks back a few mouthfuls of he water Gaius gave her before setting down the glass beside the washcloth she had draped over her forehead earlier.

"Are you okay, my child?" Gaius asks worriedly at the way she had blanched.

Morgana blinks at him and nods. "Yes, thank you Gaius... I- where's Merlin?"

Gaius shrugs, "He left a few minutes ago after checking up on you for the fourth time within an hour."

Morgana's heart flutters at the thought of the manservant. She imagines he had carried her up here, and the mental images of being in his arms instantly warms her heart. "Will you thank him for me?" She asks the physician.

Gaius nods and smiles at her. "Of course. I'll let him know when he comes back from wherever he's run off to now."

Morgana nods and slides off of the cot and onto the floor. She takes a moment to take a breath before smiling and thanking the Physician for his help after he hands her another vial of blue liquid and tells her to get some rest.

As she leaves his chambers, she doesn't head towards her own chambers, but towards Prince Arthur's. There are a few things she has to discuss with him, one of which involves that insufferable Lord Borin and his conniving little band of thieves.

She smiles to herself, knowing that something like this would certainly catch the attention of the young Prince of Camelot. Another thing she would have to discuss with him, is the fact that Princess Ophelia, is not such an innocent little princess after all.

...

A/N: Hope you guys like this! I'll be updating 'The Art of Falling' next! Please let me know what you think of this chapter!

-McDiggin'It


	13. Chapter 13

Title: He is Mine

Chapter Thirteen:

…

Morgana finds Arthur in his chambers, hunched over a table and reading through a bunch of scrolls. She walks right in, not bothering to greet the Prince formally.

"Morgana." The Prince nods to her as she crossed the chambers and takes a seat across from him.

"I have to tell you something."

The Prince quirks an eyebrow at her and puts down the scroll in his hand. "Is it about Merlin?"

Morgana's eyebrows furrow. "No... why would it be about Merlin?"

Arthur shrugs, "He's been moping around lately, and I know it's because of you."

Morgana bites her lip and looks down at her hands. "I've been avoiding him." She confesses.

Arthur nods at her. "I noticed." He says. "And I know why you're avoiding him."

There's a long silence between the two before the Prince breaks it with a loud sigh. "He's miserable, Morgana."

The woman drops her head into her hands before running her fingers through her hair. "You don't think I know that?" She asks snappishly. She doesn't mean to be so rude, but the mere mention of how she's making Merlin's life an absolute hell, makes her feel like bursting into tears. "I'm miserable too! In fact, in all my life, I've never felt so completely miserable!" She pinches the bridge of her nose. "I know what I've done, Arthur. I know that he's hurting, and I'm hurting too... but I don't regret it for one second, because I would rather go through hell and spend the rest of my life with that pathetic Lord than to let anything happen to Merlin." Tears form in her eyes, and she closes them to keep them at bay. When she opens her eyes again, her tears cascade down her cheeks as she looks at the Prince. "He means more to me than anything in this world."

Arthur offers her a small, comforting smile. "You love him enough to let him go?"

Morgana nods without hesitation. "Yes... but not to Princess Ophelia."

Arthur's eyebrows furrow at that. "But-"

"She's planning something, Arthur. Something big."

"What do you mean?" The Prince asks confusedly.

Morgana wipes her tears away with the sleeve of her dress and leans back in her seat before launching into a brief explanation of everything that's been going on.

Prince Arthur could not believe what he was hearing. Well, he does… but it's so outrageous! How dare a Lord from another kingdom try and steal from them! And Princess Ophelia is somehow connected to some sort of evil sorceress and has ulterior motives in wanting to marrying Merlin?!

Turning to Morgana, he asks. "Are you sure about all of this?"

Morgana nods. "I know what I saw up in the East tower, and I trust Gwen with my life. She wouldn't lie, let alone about something as serious as a Lord being a thief."

Arthur nods in thought as he paces his chambers. "We can't just accuse them though. It wouldn't stand in fathers court." he points out.

Morgana rolls her eyes at the Prince. "That's why I'm telling you this, Arthur. I need your help to expose Lord Borin and Princess Ophelia!"

The Prince sighs heavily and leans against the wall. "Okay… but we can't expose them both at the same time. There's just too much going on. Father expects me to write a full response to Cearleon's business proposal from last month, and then the party from Ergyng is about ready to leave now that the alliance has been finalized, which probably means that Merlin is having some serious decisions to make on Princess Ophelia's marriage proposal, and then the preparations for your wedding to that thief is currently having everyone scampering around for-"

"Then we expose Lord Borin first." Morgana cuts in. She wants nothing more than to be completely rid of that nuisance. She ignores the part about Merlin's decision on Princess Ophelia's proposal to him, because she currently has no idea how to deal with any of that for the moment.

Arthur nods in agreement. "Fine. But it won't be easy. First of all, we don't know what he's trying to steal. Second, we don't know if he'd already stolen whatever it is. And last, we don't know how to prove that he has a key to fathers vault when I've had the key the whole time."

At this, Morgana gives the Prince an incredulous look. "You have the key?"

Arthur nods and pulls a thick string from around his neck. A small copper key was dangling from its end. "It never left me… so either Lord Borin managed to somehow make a copy of the key just by looking at it hanging around my neck, or someone swapped out the real key with a fake one."

Morgana nods slowly. "But how? Like you said, the key never left you."

Arthur nods slowly and thinks hard and long. It takes a few long moments, but his eyes finally widen in realization. "The night when father announced your betrothal to Lord Borin."

Morgana blinks confusedly. "You took the key off?"

Arthur pauses and thinks, then shakes his head. "No, but…" he trails off and looks down. "I'm not sure how or why, but I must've drank something strong that night because I don't remember much after my talk with father and Lord Borin. When I woke up the next day, I'd already been taken to my chambers by some of the guards, and the key was still with me."

Morgana nods slowly, her mind working a mile a minute to try and piece everything together. She shakes her head at the Prince and widens her eyes at him. "Or someone slipped something in your drink, waited for you to pass out, and then took the key. That must've been exactly when Gwen was serving Lord Borin and overheard him asking his men if they'd gotten a hold of the vault key!"

"Then they must've returned it before I woke up!" Arthur's eyes widen, the whole thing making much more sense to him now. His eyes narrow instantly at that. "That must mean he's already got whatever he planned to take from the vault."

Morgana nods in agreement. "So we'll have to check the vault." She says, already moving towards the door. She suddenly stops abruptly and looks at Arthur with widened eyes. "This explains why he wants to push the wedding forward and then take me with him to Mercia in three days!"

"What?!" Arthur asks incredulously. "When did he tell you this?"

"A few hours ago." Morgana could not believe it. "He— he's trying to flee!" she realizes with a jolt. "He probably already stole whatever he came to steal, and now he's trying to get me to marry him so that I would be legally bound to him, in which no one would have a say in the matter of whether or not he could take me wherever the hell he's trying to take me. Then by the time anyone realizes that something has been stolen from the vault, he would be long gone, and I with him!" Fury boils inside her heart and lungs as she begins to pace around Arthur's chambers.

"Question is, why does he want to marry you?" Arthur wonders.

Morgana scoffs, "He's a sick bastard, that's why!" She paces, "He probably just wants to do whatever he wants with me once we arrive in Mercia."

The Prince stares for a long moment before suddenly crossing the room and grabbing his sword from his table. "Not if we do something about him."

Morgana looks at him and nods in full agreement. It would be one of the few rare moments when she actually agrees with the Prince. "What do we do?"

Arthur couldn't believe what he was about to say, but desperate times calls for a certain manservant of his. "First of all, we need Merlin."

"What? Why?" Morgana asks in a panicked tone.

Arthur sighs and gives her an exasperated look. "Because he's Merlin! As horrible as he is at being a manservant, the man can find a needle in a haystack if he really wants to." He then stops and shrugs, "plus, I need him to make a sleeping potion, and then sneak into Lord Borin's chambers tonight to find whatever he's stolen."

"I don't like this one bit, Arthur." Morgana tells the Prince.

Arthur sighs and looks at her. "Look, I know you and Merlin are having issues at the moment, but right now, exposing Lord Borin is a bit more important than your discomfort in seeing Merlin."

Morgana glares at the Prince and scoffs in disbelief. "Believe me, Arthur. Seeing Merlin is not what discomforts me."

"Well then what's the big deal?" Arthur asks exasperatedly.

Morgana goes silent and stares at her hands. After a long moment of thinking, she finally looks up at the King's son and gives him a hesitant look. "I've been dreaming about him."

Arthur blinks at her, then widens his eyes comically as he raises his hands in front of him as if to push her away. Instead, he just shakes his head rapidly and says, "Please spare me the details of whatever you and Merlin do in your dreams."

Morgana smacks him in the shoulder and glares at him. "Not _those_ kind of dreams, you idiot!" She snaps.

The Prince stares at her and wonders aloud. "Well if it's not those kind of dreams, then what exactly are you dreaming he's doing?"

"Not doing." She replies in a low tone. "It's more like what's happening to him in those dreams."

Arthur stares some more, a worried frown forming on his lips. "And what's happening to him?"

Morgana sighs heavily and pinches the bridge of her nose. When she looks back at Arthur, her expression had gone from concerned to downright terrified. "He- he's dying, over and over again." She shakes her head as tears form in her eyes. She quickly wipes them away before they could fall. "Sometimes it's different," she continues shakily. "But sometimes it's the same..." she trails off then looks at the Prince with worried eyes. "And I think Princess Ophelia has something to do with Merlin's… deaths in my dreams." she shudders at the thought of her horrible nightmares. "At first I thought it was Uther who would put Merlin's life in danger, but after witnessing what I did with Princess Ophelia, I know for a fact that _she's_ the one who will put Merlin's life in danger if I let her take him to Ergyng."

Arthur shakes his head confusedly. "They're just dreams, Morgana. They can't be-"

"They're not!" Morgana says sharply and sternly. She shakes her head, "I don't know why or how, but these dreams, they don't feel like normal dreams. They feel too real, and every time I have them, I can feel him slipping away."

The Prince exhales heavily and leans over the table. He looks at Morgana, feeling helpless and useless. "I- I don't know how I can help you with that... but what I can help you with, is protecting Merlin."

The King's ward looks curiously at the blonde man. "How?"

Arthur shrugs, "I'll keep him close. Watch his every move. Make sure that he doesn't fall and break his neck or something. Lord knows he's as clumsy as a cat." He tries to joke, but only gets a glare from his fathers ward.

"That's not funny, Arthur." She says quietly. "And cats aren't clumsy."

Arthur blinks at her, "Not the ones _I've_ seen."

Morgana stares at him, "Where the hell did you see these cats?"

Arthur shrugs, "Various places. They all seem to have four left feet." He chuckles.

Morgana's lip quivers and she bites it in hopes of stilling it. "You have no idea how terrified I am of seeing him get hurt."

Arthur nods, beginning to understand why Morgana struck that absurd deal with his father. "When did you start having these dreams?" He asks.

Morgana sighs, "Since before Merlin got thrown in the dungeons."

The Prince nods, her words confirming his suspicions. He assures her that Merlin will be okay. "I'll deny ever saying this, but... sometimes, Merlin can be really useful." He takes Morgana's hand in his and squeezes it comfortingly. "We need him, Morgana."

Morgana stares at the Prince for a long time, contemplating the pros and cons to asking Merlin for help. In the end, she trusts Arthur to keep him safe, and she finally agrees to let Merlin in on their plan.

Their next step is checking the King's vault. Arthur quickly unlocks the door to the vault before quickly ushering Morgana inside.

Morgana had never actually been in there, so to say she was surprised at finding so many magical objects and artifacts, is an understatement. She turns around and around, staring at all the shiny little orbs, trinkets, and whatnots, all while trying to make sense of what she was seeing. Turning to the Prince, she gives him an incredulous look. "For a King who hates magic so much, he sure does have a lot of magical objects in his possession."

Arthur shrugs at her, "He keeps them from getting into the wrong hands."

"Why doesn't he just destroy them?" she asks disbelievingly.

The Prince shrugs, "Some of these objects are indestructible."

Morgana scoffs and rolls her eyes, "Yeah, well the very man he chose to be my future husband has probably stolen a few of those indestructible things, so Uther really hasn't kept a thing from getting into his hands, has he?"

The Prince offers her a sympathetic look. "I know you don't agree with most of fathers decisions, but I really do think that the decisions he makes is in Camelot's best interest."

Morgana throws her hands in the air exasperatedly. "That's just it! He makes all of his decisions in the name of Camelot, including the decision of who we are to marry, and for what? An alliance he'll probably never need?" She rolls her eyes. "What will Camelot gain from me marrying that suffocating ogre?!"

Arthur sighs as he continues looking through the many objects in the vault. "I'm not disagreeing with you, but only because I don't like Lord Borin one bit. I've just met him the same time as you, and I already didn't like him... although, he looks oddly familiar." He pauses in his search to ponder who or what it was that reminded him of Lord Borin. After a few long moments, he gives up with a sigh and continues searching.

After nearly 20 minutes of searching, Arthur freezes, his eyes widening in horror as he realizes something. Something, or rather, _someone_ he'd seen before. He turns to the corner of the vault and hurries to it.

Morgana watches him curiously as he begins pulling several objects off of a shelf and laying them aside. "What is it?"

Arthur stops, taking a step back as he continues to stare at a small empty spot on the shelf. "I know what he took." He mumbles, then turns to Morgana with wide eyes. "And I'm almost a hundred percent sure that he's _not_ Lord Borin."

Morgana's eyebrows furrow in confusion as she stares at him. "What do you mean he's not Lord Borin?"

Arthur rolls his eyes, "That man who claims to be Lord Borin, is not a Lord. He's an infamous thief whose face looked familiar to me because I saw it on a wanted person poster in Caerleon a few months ago when father sent me there for a business deal. He's a thief who works for the highest bidder."

"Wait, what?!" Morgana was torn between rage and elation. On one hand, she can't believe that the impostor had actually had the entirety of Camelot fooled. On the other hand, this new piece of information is the key to her freedom from being married! But... "How the bloody hell did no one know that he's not a real Lord?"

Arthur smacks himself lightly on the forehead and groans. "Why didn't I realize it before?!" He asks no one in particular.

Morgana grabs him by the shoulders and shakes him. "Arthur, do you realize what this means?"

Arthur blinks at her. "Yes. It means that your idiot ex-future husband is a wanted criminal, and he's stolen the stone of Mortem."

The King's ward blinks blankly at the Prince. "The what?"

Arthur sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "It's the stone of destruction. The one father used to get rid of the dragons during the great purge."

At this, Morgana's eyes widen in horror. "If that's the case, then what are we still doing here? We need to get that stone back from him, or we are all as good as dead if it gets to the wrong hands!"

Arthur nods as he ushers Morgana out of the vault and locks it securely behind them. Morgana makes for the stairs, but the Prince quickly stops her. "Wait." He shakes his head and looks at her apologetically. "You have to marry him."

"What?!"

"It's the only way we can expose him. I need you to put on those horrendously good acting skills you used as a child, and charm our little impostor into believing that you will marry him."

Morgana blinks at the Prince, not entirely sure if he was being serious. "You're joking."

The Prince shakes his head. "No."

"Arthur, I'm not sure if you know this, but as soon as I marry that Thief, Lord or not, I will be officially bound to him as his wife!"

Arthur grins and shakes his head. "Not without the royal seal you won't." He raises his hand and wiggles his pinky finger at the King's ward.

Morgana squints at him. "Are you suggesting we-"

"Forge a fake seal?" Arthur finishes for her and grins widely.

Morgana stares at the Prince and smirks. "You're a whole lot more fun when you're breaking your own fathers rules."

Arthur snorts, "Yeah, well don't get used to it."

…

After lunch with Gwen, Merlin finds himself outside on the training grounds, watching a bunch of Knights train. Although his eyes are set on the Knights, his thoughts are elsewhere… several elsewhere's. Just as he was beginning to warm up to the idea of being with Princess Ophelia, Gwen completely destroys that with the information about Morgana's need of his help to expose her fiancé. Honestly, he has no idea what he's going to do anymore. On one hand, he had kind of sort of led on Princess Ophelia when he told her that he wanted to get to know her better, and hopefully end up on the same page as her. On the other hand, he really doesn't want to leave Camelot. This place is his home. It held memories of the happiest times of his life. It's home to the people he loves and cares for. What will he have if he leaves it all behind to be with Princess Ophelia in Ergyng? He has no one there. He knows no one there, except the Princess herself and her father. He sighs heavily and looks down at his worn out boots.

"Still thinking about Morgana?"

Merlin looks up to find the Prince smiling at him. He shrugs, "I don't even know what to think anymore."

Arthur nods as he plops down beside his manservant. "Understandable… she's Morgana."

"I just… I don't know what to do. Princess Ophelia will be leaving in a few days, and while I thought I'd made up my mind about taking her up on her offer, Gwen just threw me a curve in the form of Morgana needing my help, and now I'm right back to square one."

The Prince goes ahead and assumes that Gwen has only scratched the surface of what's going on with Lord Borin and Princess Ophelia, so he says nothing, deciding that they would need a more private place to have that conversation. He claps the manservant on the back and looks at him. "I think I can help you make up your mind."

The manservant blinks at the Prince. "What do you mean?"

Arthur gets up and nods towards his Knights. "I'll tell you after training… you can do whatever you want for the time being."

Merlin stares at the back of the Prince's head as he makes his way towards his knights. Odd… Arthur has been really nice lately, and it's weird. Pleasant, but weird. The manservant gets up and heads back into the castle when he spots someone in a distance, headed his way. Lord Borin.

"You!" the man glares and points at him. "Where have you taken my fiancé? I've been looking everywhere for her!"

Merlin resists the urge to roll his eyes, scoff, and then set him on fire with his magic. "I took her to the Physician's chambers… she should be up and about now." as he goes to step past the Lord, the man stops him with forceful squeeze to his shoulder.

"You should watch who you're talking to, boy."

Merlin looks down at the hand on his shoulder. He can usually bite his tongue and swallow his pride. But with this particular man, he couldn't. The manservants fingers curl into fists, and all his precautions on his magic flees his brain as he begins to feel the hum of power surging through his veins.

"Merlin!"

The manservant blinks rapidly and looks up towards the direction Lord Borin had come from. "Ophelia." he mentally smacks himself for his near slip-up as he takes a step away from Lord Borin and shrugs off the hand on his shoulder.

"Hi." The Princess greets him with a bat of her lashes. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

Merlin smiles sheepishly at her. "I do apologize. I've been… busy."

Lord Borin had taken that as his cue to leave and bowed towards the Princess before making his way down to the training grounds.

"He seems quiet." Princess Ophelia comments as Merlin watches the man with narrowed eyes.

The manservant shrugs, "He's… something."

The Princess's notices the look on Merlin's face and lays a hand on his arm. "Everything okay?"

Merlin nods quickly and smiles at her. "Yeah… just tired is all." he fakes a yawn and begins towards the castle. "I should probably check on Arthur's… horse."

"Merlin?" Princess Ophelia calls.

The man stops and looks at her. "Yes?"

The Princess then raises a hand and points down towards the direction where Lord Borin had walked towards. "The stables are that way."

For a moment, he's confused. "Wha— ohh." he nods, "Right. I errr— I actually need to draw Arthur's bath before I get to checking on his horse."

Princess Ophelia's eyebrows furrow at him as she tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Won't his bath be cold by the time he's done with training?"

Merlin looks around frantically before replying quickly, "He enjoys cold baths after training… it's good for his— his back. He has a bad back, and I think he's thinking of getting branded with Camelot's insignia."

Princess Ophelia stares confusedly at the manservant. He's so cute when he's nervously talking fast. "Camelot's insignia, huh?" she doesn't quite believe Merlin about that, but she puts that down to him being nervous around her. She thinks it's adorable.

Merlin nods dumbly. _How much more stupid am I with words?_ he wonders to himself. "Yeah… he's— really looking forward to getting marked with his beloved Kingdom's insignia." apparently, a lot more stupid than he thought possible.

Princess Ophelia giggles and places a hand on his chest. "Hmmm… a man with a mark."

"Yup." Merlin nods and adds, "seems like a trend going on. Everyone is apparently going around marking themselves."

The Princess laughs at that. "Can't say I find it odd. One of my best childhood friends had himself marked on his right shoulder… Ergyng's insignia."

"Oh?" Merlin blinks. Huh.. he was only kidding about insignia marks, but it seems it's not a joke in Ergyng. "That's bold of him." he says because he doesn't know what else to say.

Princess Ophelia laughs, "Yeah, well… he turned out a little less bold when he decided that he didn't like having morals, principle's, and standards." she smiles sadly and looks down towards the training grounds. "Haven't seen him since we were both 14." she shrugs.

Merlin honestly has no idea what to say to any of that. Should he say he's sorry that her friend turned out to be an idiot? He decides not to, and instead smiles kindly at her. "I errr— I have to get Arthur's bath ready now if you'll excuse me."

Princess Ophelia nods to him. Merlin bows before quickly making his way back into the castle.

Merlin finds himself back in Gaius' chambers, where he finds the old man rummaging through a chest of potions. "Gaius," he says slowly, not sure of what he wants to say or ask. He had wanted to ask the elderly man for advice, but about halfway through, he remembers how cautious Gaius is. No doubt, the old man would tell him to choose the safer route and go with Princess Ophelia to Ergyng, become her King, and live happily ever after. It sounds like the perfect deal. A dream come true for most servants… but he's not like most servants. He's too used to Camelot. He's too loyal to Arthur. He enjoys living with Gaius too much. Gwen is too good a friend to him… the manservant sighs heavily as he drops into a seat at the table. The Physician turns and gives him a questioning look.

"Is everything okay?"

Merlin shakes his head and sighs heavily in exhaustion. The frustration running through his veins nearly pushes him to breaking point. His lip quivers a tad as he looks up at his guardian. "I— Gaius, I think… no… I know, more than anything I've ever known, that…"

"That what?" Gaius pushes.

Merlin takes a deep breath before finally spitting it out. "I'm in love with the Lady Morgana."

It takes a short moment before the Physician finally says something. "Oh dear." he thinks back to just a few hours ago when the Lady Morgana had called out Merlin's name in her sleep, and wonders if maybe he should tell his ward. He quickly decides against it, knowing that it's not for him to tell. He crosses the room and sits down across from his ward. "Merlin, you can't."

"I know I can't." Merlin snaps. He didn't mean to, but he's so tired and frustrated with all these rules and customs against who he should be with and who he should love. _Why couldn't Camelot be more like Ergyng?!_ He sighs as he looks at Gaius again. "I can't help who I fall in love with, Gaius… telling me not to love Morgana is like telling me not to blink. It doesn't matter how hard I try not to, my eyes will close of their own accord when it cannot take staying open any longer."

Gaius frowns as he regards his ward with a concerned look. "I know."

Merlin looks skeptically at the elderly man. "You do?"

The Physician nods and sighs as he leans back in his chair. "I was once a young man too, you know?"

Merlin stares. "You— you've been in love with someone of royalty before?"

Gaius snorts. "Absolutely not. You're alone on that one…" he trails off and gives his ward a sympathetic look. "But I've been in love before, many many years ago."

Merlin couldn't even picture a young Gaius. One that wore trousers instead of that ghastly long dress he calls a robe. He looks at the Physician and leans forward. "What happened?"

Gaius shrugs, "She died."

"What?!" Merlin exclaims in a mixture of surprise and fear. "How?"

"An illness… I was 26 at the time, and— well, I didn't know much about healing and whatnot." he chuckles softly, "I was quite horrible at it, actually."

Merlin stares some more. A time when Gaius was horrible at being a Physician must've been a horribly long time ago. "But you were with her, right? I mean before she… she died?"

Gaius shakes his head. "Dear heavens, no. She never knew I was in love with her!"

"What?!" Merlin exclaims again, and then glares at his guardian. "Gaius, this story doesn't sound very uplifting, not to mention, it seems like this happened a century ago."

It's Gaius' turn to glare at his ward, and he does so very well. "I'm not that old, Merlin." he leans forward, placing his elbows on the table and squinting at the young man before him. "The point is, despite the fact that I was in love with this girl, I never told her about the way I felt because her father and my father were enemies. I knew that nothing good would come of anything between us. She died never knowing that I had loved her."

Merlin stares, knowing where Gaius was going with this conversation, and not liking a single bit of it. "You're saying that I should give up whatever I'm feeling for Morgana?"

Gaius scoffs, "No… did you not listen to a word I just said?"

Merlin groans and runs a hand through his hair in exasperation. "I'm absolutely confused now. What are you trying to say, Gaius?"

The Physician reaches forward and grabs Merlin by his shoulders. "I'm saying that you should tell her how you feel, Merlin. Let her choose. And if she chooses you," he pauses and shrugs, "then you'll have to be brave for what is to come."

Merlin leaves Gaius' chambers feeling both relieved and even more confused than he was before he went there. He's glad that Gaius wants him to pursue Morgana, but… she's already kind of made her choice. She chose Lord Borin. But on the other hand, he still hasn't told Morgana exactly how he feels about her. The young warlock rolls his eyes to himself for stressing too much on something that should've been thoughtless. He'll have to leave those thoughts for later. For now, he has to meet Arthur at his chambers for whatever it is that the Prince wanted to tell him earlier.

...

When Merlin arrives, he finds Gwen sitting beside the Prince, looking at a scroll. He clears his throat loudly, making his presence known.

"Ah!" Arthur says with a grin. "Now that you've finally decided to show up, let's begin, shall we?"

Merlin looks around confusedly. "Begin what?"

Arthur smirks as he pulls a seat back and gestures to it. "Sit. I'll brief you in a moment."

The manservant obeys quietly, although his eyes dart around the Prince's chambers, trying to find what it is that Arthur has decided to hurt him with. Gwen smiles at him and nods her head. "You'll understand quite a lot in a bit."

Arthur takes his seat beside Gwen again before launching into a long explanation of what has been going on, leaving out only the part about Morgana's affections for the manservant, as well as Princess Ophelia's dealings with an evil sorceress, and Morgana's dreams and thoughts on the matter of Merlin being a part of their grand scheme to expose Lord Borin.

Merlin was immediately confused, asking why he needs to make a sleeping potion, and what this means for the Lady Morgana. On one hand, he's absolutely elated that the Lady Morgana won't actually be marrying anyone. On the other hand, if she's really in love with that idiot, he doesn't want her to be left heartbroken. He has half the mind to go over to the impostor's chambers and strangle him for being an impostor.

Arthur tries his best to explain the details, which Gwen is already familiar with, but Merlin is not.

"Is the Lady Morgana okay with this plan?" He asks warily.

Arthur chuckles softly and regards the manservant with a soft knowing look. "I think you deserve the truth about Morgana's sudden change in demeanor."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Gwen steps in then and smiles at her friend. "I think he means that whatever Morgana told you about not wanting to see you and all that nonsense, was for your safety and protection."

"I don't-" Merlin shakes his head. "I don't understand."

"Morgana has been having dreams of you dying, Merlin." Arthur says bluntly. "And she somehow thinks that they're visions of the future. So in an effort to prevent her visions from happening, she's been actively trying to protect you from all sorts of threats and dangers." The Prince looks sheepishly at the manservant and adds, "my father happens to potentially be the most dangerous to you, so... Morgana struck a deal with him."

"Wait..." the manservant pauses to try and absorb all this new information and shakes his head. "What deal?"

Arthur and Gwen exchange smiles before the Prince replies, "In exchange for your safety, she promised Uther that she would stop seeing you, and marry anyone of his choosing."

Merlin stares incredulously at the Prince. "And you knew this?"

Arthur rolls his eyes, "Of course not. I only figured it out when my father released you from the dungeons. Morgana made the deal before I could intervene."

The manservant takes a few moments to fully absorb that before looking up at his friends. "So she's not angry at me anymore?"

Gwen chuckles and shakes her head along with Arthur. "She had never been angry with you, Merlin." She pats him lightly on the shoulder. "Everything she has ever said about not wanting to see you, not caring about you, and whatever else she said, was all a lie to keep you away from King Uther's wrath. She gave up her feelings and emotions, and promised to marry Lord Borin in exchange for Uther's promise to not harm a hair on your head."

Merlin blinks rapidly, his heart expanding with love and joy inside his chest, threatening to burst open. He looks at the Prince, silently asking for confirmation of Gwen's words. At the Prince's nod, the manservant slowly falls to his knees as his chest heaves a sigh of relief. "She cares about me." He says softly to himself.

Arthur and Gwen exchange smiles. The Prince pats his friend on the back and stoops down to look him in the eye. "I think she feels a little more than that for you, Merlin. But that's a conversation for later. Right now, I need your help to expose that conniving little clotpole." Merlin beams at the Prince's use of his word. "Are you in?" The Prince asks with a grin.

Merlin gets back onto his feet and smiles at his two friends with a determined look on his face. "What do I need to do?"

...

Prince Arthur is no liar by any standards, but at the moment, he cares not about lying to the Lord Borin impostor. "I'm really happy for the both of you." The Prince says with a well-practiced smile of enthusiasm. "The Lady Morgana is like a sister to me, and I know you would both make quite a match."

The impostor beams with delight at the Prince. "Thank you, Prince Arthur. I have to admit, when I first met you, I thought you didn't like me very much." he couldn't believe how easy it is to manipulate everyone in Camelot. When his work here is done, he will flee the city with Morgana as his new plaything, and a huge reward awaiting him when he arrives in Ergyng.

Arthur scoffs then laughs. "Me? Dislike you?! Never!" He laughs a little too loudly, then coughs several times to cover up his uncommon enthusiasm. "We should celebrate!" he exclaims in a chipper tone. He leans in towards the Lord Borin impostor and whispers, "A secret trip to the tavern should suffice, aye?"

The impostor's eyebrows furrow as he frowns. This was not part of his plan. He was to stay alert until he has everything he needs, and then leave hastily after his grand wedding to the Lady Morgana. But, he supposes one drink couldn't harm. Plus, it would win him the favor of the King's son even more! So he nods, and grins widely. "A trip to the tavern is exactly what I need."

"Then it's set." Arthur grins widely, clapping him on the shoulder for good measure. "I will see you tonight, my good man." He turns and waves over his shoulder as he makes his way down the hall towards the Physicians chambers, with a fully intact smirk on his face. The impostor won't know what hit him.

When he arrives to Gaius' chambers, he finds Merlin hunched over a large book with a contemplative look on his face. Arthur grins as he takes a wash cloth from one of the nails on the wall and throws it at his manservant.

Merlin yelps, jumping to his feet before noticing Arthur and glaring. "Thank you, Sire." He says sarcastically. "That was exactly what I needed to make this potion work."

Arthur laughs as he sits down across from his friend. "Find anything useful yet?"

Merlin sighs and shakes his head. "There are too many."

"Too many what?"

Merlin points at a picture of a flower. "Ingredients. I'll never have it done in time."

Arthur frowns as he looks over the page Merlin was previously looking at. "It looks like all you need is a single leaf from a white vein kratom."

Merlin nods, "Dried in the sun for three days, grounded, and then administered into the sedative."

Arthur huffs and looks around. "Is there none in Gaius' potion chest?"

Merlin shakes his head and sighs. "Checked twice."

The Prince frowns, not sure of how they were going to sedate the impostor now. Looking down at the manservant, he leans forward and places a hand on his shoulder. "I know you'll find a way to get it done, Merlin." He says quietly.

The manservant nods and sighs heavily. "Yeah, well that makes one of us."

After the Prince leaves to find Gwaine, Merlin goes back to reading through all the books in Gaius' collection about sedatives, in hopes of finding a shortcut. That is, until a knock on the door stops him. Getting up, the manservant rolls his eyes. If he doesn't find a shortcut to making this sedative, he won't have a sedative to give Arthur. He runs a hand through his hair as he grabs the latch on the door and pulls it before swinging the wooden door open. The sight before him is one he did not expect at all. His heart hammers wildly in his chest as he stares.

"Merlin." Morgana says breathily. She had longed for this moment, dreamt of it even, and yet it still feels so completely different. Her heart, she notices immediately feels like it's about to explode. "May I come in?" she manages.

Merlin can only nod as he takes a step back.

...

A/N: I know I'm really late on the update, so I do apologize. I've been busy with work. Anyway, I hope you all like this chapter! Next chapter, as you probably guessed, will start off exactly where this one left off. Some beautiful Mergana moments coming up next! Thank you for reading, and please leave a review!

-McDiggin'It


	14. Chapter 14

Title: He is Mine

Chapter Fourteen:

...

It has only been a few days since she had so brutally broken the manservants heart, but to Morgana, it felt like a lifetime. So much has happened and so much has changed in the span of a few days. Standing in Gaius' chambers as Merlin avoids her gaze and runs around putting on a fresh pot of tea, Morgana could barely stand the weight of not speaking to him the way that she used to. She had missed him so much, she feels like she might cry if he continues to avoid looking at her. With a deep breath, she finally speaks.

"Merlin."

Merlin turns away from her, checking the pot of water for the third time since he had it put on the fire, two minutes ago.

"Merlin." Morgana tries again, her heart heavy and her lips quivering. She feels like there's a fist around her heart, clenching as she stares at the manservants back. She knows that what she did was horrible, but she's here to make things right. She's here to tell him that she's so absolutely sorry for everything she'd said to him the other night. She moves towards him, only stopping once she's directly behind him. "Please turn around." She whispers softly.

Merlin tenses, and he pauses for a long moment before he finally turns around to face the Kings ward. His eyes are averted to the floor, however, because he's not sure he'll be able to control his emotions if he looks directly at her.

Morgana raises a hand, hoping to touch him, but the manservant takes a quick step back from her. Her heart aches even more as she drops her hand back down to her side and looks longingly at him. "Please look at me." She whispers pleadingly.

The manservant slowly lifts his head, and his eyes finally connect with hers. This has been the closest he's been to her since the night she broke his heart, and it feels so good to finally see her beautiful green eyes up close again.

Morgana finds herself completely silent as she takes in the sight of the man in front of her. She lets out a shaky breath as the corners of her lips turn up in a small, content smile. He looks worn and weary, but he's still as handsome as ever. Being there, alone with the one man she is so willing to give up everything for, feels like the greatest gift she has ever received in her entire life.

"Merlin, I..." she pauses and shakes her head slowly as tears well up in her eyes. "... I don't even know where to begin." She lets out a weak, humorless laugh. "I spent a half hour, walking around aimlessly and practicing what I wanted to to say to you, but-" she pauses, her lips quivering again and her tears thickening in her eyes as her threat begins to close up. She knew this was going to happen at some point during their conversation, but she had no idea that it would happen so soon, let alone before she even began saying what she went there to say. She bites her lip hard, as she stares at the manservant who was now staring at her with wide, worried eyes. "I don't even know what to say." She looks down, ashamed and angry at herself for all the pain and heartache that she has caused the man before her. Before she could continue with her blubbering, Merlin stops her abruptly when he suddenly moves his arm, and wraps one of his large, warm hands around one of her small, petite ones.

Morgana blinks, her tears still pouring and fresh on her cheeks.

"Then don't say anything." Merlin whispers softly as he reaches up with his free hand and wipes her tears away with his thumb. " _I'll_ say something."

Morgana could not tell anything from his blank expression. The only sign that he felt something, were his blue eyes, staring right into the depths of her soul. He doesn't continue yet, first pulling her gently towards the table and the bench in the middle of Gaius' chambers. She takes a seat when he gestures for her to sit down, and she follows him with her eyes as he goes back to the pot on the fire and removes it. He sighs, his back to her as he raises his hand and runs it through his hair. After several moments, he finally turns around and offers her an apologetic look. "We don't have tea." He admits. "Gaius went to the market to get some earlier, and he still hasn't returned."

Morgana blinks at him again, having expected him to say something that had nothing to do with tea and everything to do with them. "It's okay." She says softly.

Merlin nods before walking back over to her and taking a seat beside her. She expects him to face the table, but instead, he straddles the bench and faces directly towards her. He's so close, she could feel his warmth, and she tries not to lean into him. After several moments of staring at each other, Merlin sighs heavily and begins talking.

"After the night you began pushing me away, I'll admit, I was heartbroken." He begins softly, and his heart aches at seeing the King's ward close her eyes and release even more tears down her perfect face. He continues softly, wanting to get everything off his chest. "I'll also admit that after I left your chambers, I cried like a baby."

"Merlin, I'm so sorry-"

"No." Merlin shakes his head and looks at her with soft, sad eyes. "Don't apologize."

"But I-"

"Please let me finish." Merlin cuts in pleadingly. He waits for her to nod before offering her a tiny smile. "I tried my best to stay away, and not care. I've talked myself into circles, trying to use the memory of the way you hurt me to lessen the feelings I have for you... but it didn't change anything. Even when Princess Ophelia offered me a deal that no servant in their right mind could ever turn down, I... I could not stop thinking about you. I could not stop dreaming of you at night, longing for you in the daytime, and wishing to wake up one day and find that everything you'd said to me the last time we spoke, was a horrible nightmare." He slowly leans forward, reaching an arm across the bench and taking her hand in his. He could see how much pain she's feeling, and could sense the guilt she's trying to suppress. But he wants her to know the truth of how his heart lurches and expands at the mere thought of her. She looks down at their touching hands as tears continue to fall down her face. "I've tried, Morgana." Merlin whispers softly. "The pain of it is maddening and bloody unbearable, but I tried." He then squeezes her hand lightly and his lips turn up in a small smile. "And just when I thought I could actually move on and accept Princess Ophelia's offer, Gwen told me that you needed my help." He moves forward just a little more, his knees brushing against Morgana. "The moment she said those words, I knew without a doubt in my mind, that I could never, ever leave this place. Camelot, despite all the heartache and pain I've had here these past two years, is my home."

Morgana smiles at the manservant and covers their intertwined fingers with her free hand.

"This is my home because I found friends here who care for me. It's my home because I found a mentor who has taught me so much about life and family. It's my home because the memories I've made here, are irreplaceable... but most of all, it's my home because on the first day I got here, I saw the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my entire life. To this day, it still remains the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, and I cannot live, cannot go on, cannot be without it."

Morgana furrows her eyebrows at the man before her, remembering a few days ago when she had asked him on the night she feigned illness, to tell her of the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. "And what is it?"

With a smile, the manservant pulls her towards him until their faces are just a few centimeters apart. "You."

Morgana, despite her best efforts to not cry, lets out a small sob as she moves closer to him and leans her forehead against Merlin's. "Oh Merlin." She cries softly while she raises her arms and takes his face in her hands. "I'm so sorry for causing you so much heartache these past few days."

Merlin shakes his head gently. "Arthur and Gwen told me why you did it."

Morgana pulls away and looks questioningly at the manservant. "They did?"

The manservant smiles and nods at her. "Yes."

"Everything?"

Merlin shrugs, "If by everything you mean the fact that you made a deal with King Uther to let me go and promise to leave me alone in exchange for marrying whomever he chooses, then yes… they told me everything. Including the fact that the man we know as Lord Borin, isn't who he says he is, and is actually a thief."

The King's ward feels her hot tears begin to well up in her eyes again for what seems to be the hundredth time in under an hour. The only difference between the tears she's shedding now and the tears she was shedding earlier, these tears are ones of utter relief and joy. All that's left for her to apologize for, is for keeping the whole truth of Merlin. Before she could even do that though, Merlin shakes his head profusely and smiles at her.

"Don't apologize for keeping the truth from me… I understand why you did it, and quite frankly, I probably would've made things even more difficult for you." He gives her a soft, sheepish look. "Had I known what you gave up for me, I would've been completely against it. I would've begged for you to go to Uther and break off the deal you made…" he trails off, suddenly staring at her mouth as his breathing labors. "… I would've kissed you the way I wanted to that night…" his eyes search Morgana's for something to indicate what she's feeling. "… the way I want, right now."

Morgana finds herself leaning in towards him again, her eyes growing heavy, her mouth watering at the thought of finally getting her first taste of Merlin, her fingers aching to run through his hair, and her heart beating borderline maniacally in her chest. Just before her lips touches his, she whispers in the tiniest of voices, "Kiss me."

Time moves slower and slower around them, until finally, at least to them, it stops completely as their lips finally meet. It's soft, tentative, and slow. The feeling in their hearts is euphoric, making the both of them delirious and dizzy with pleasure. They stay that way for a few short moments before Morgana finds feeling in her hands and she raises them to grasp at the back of Merlin's neck, pulling him closer. She wants more of him as she opens her mouth to his, and slides her tongue out to brush over his lips. Merlin's response is automatic, opening his own mouth and slipping his tongue through his lips to meet Morgana's in a delicious duel.

Somehow, in the haze of lust, want, and need, the young couple end up on the table with Morgana on her back and Merlin hovering over her. Their kiss had grown desperate and passionate, both trying to take in as much of each other as possible.

Merlin groans softly when Morgana takes his bottom lip between her teeth and bites down gently. Her hands begin to roam over his chest, dragging up the bottom of his shirt until the red fabric is bunched up around his chest. The manservant could not comprehend what was happening as he pulls away long enough to let Morgana drag his shirt over his head and off of him in one swift motion. He returns right back to kissing her, one hand beside her head, supporting his weight off of her, and the other resting high on her hip. His hand inches slowly up her body until he finds himself cupping one of her ample breasts in the palm of his hand. He returns the earlier assault and gently bites Morgana's lip, pulling lightly as his hand caresses her breast through her dress. He grins against her lips as she lets out a loud, throaty moan.

Morgana trails her hands over Merlin's naked chest, feeling the hardness of his pectorals. She trails her hands down farther and farther, enjoying the feeling of his quivering muscles beneath her fingertips. Just as her fingers come into contact with the drawstrings of his trousers, the sound of a door slamming shut startles the ever-loving hell out of herself and the man above her. Merlin jumps a little too high and ends up stumbling off of her and onto the floor. Morgana sits up, her eyes wide and her heart in her throat as she looks directly at the figure standing at the door.

"Gaius!" Merlin whines in annoyance. "Don't you knock?"

The elderly physician stares at his ward with wide eyes before looking at the King's ward, sitting on his table with her hands over her face in embarrassment. The physician then looks at his own ward again and quirks an eyebrow at him. "I do, except when the chambers is mine." he replies.

Merlin groans as he gets up off the floor and quickly helps Morgana off of the table before grabbing his discarded shirt and pulling it back on. For some reason, in the middle of all the lust he was feeling, he had no idea that Morgana had even pulled his shirt off of him until he found himself feeling a little too vulnerable under Gaius' gaze. He should be feeling utterly embarrassed and maybe even a little scared, but after what he'd just experienced with Morgana, all he can really think about, is the feeling of her skin against his, and the taste of her lips on his tongue.

"Gaius," Morgana begins apologetically. "I apologize, we were just—".

"Milady," Gaius cuts in with a soft, knowing look. "There's no need for you to explain what it was the two of you were doing on the table where I eat. I'm old, not blind."

Morgana's face burns even further as she averts her gaze towards Merlin. If the situation weren't so utterly embarrassing, she would've completely melted at the way Merlin's hair is sticking up at odd angles. She turns her attention back to the Physician and she apologizes again. "I'm so very sorry. I just came here to speak with Merlin, but… as you can tell," she gestures towards the table, "we ended up doing a little more than that."

Gaius sighs and looks between the two. He pulls one of the chairs from beside the fire and sets it by the table before sitting down in it. "Sit." he says to no one in particular. He watches as Merlin pulls the bench back and gestures for the Lady Morgana to sit before sitting down beside her. The elderly man shakes his head and looks at the King's ward. "I know that I told you to be careful of these kinds of things before, so I'm not going to say it again."

Morgana nods, a small frown forming on her face. "I know."

"But," Gaius continues slowly, getting a confused look from the King's ward then. "I also told Merlin earlier that if he wants to be with you, he should tell you how he feels."

This was news to Morgana, who honestly thought that Gaius was about to chastise them both for forgetting their place. "You did?" she asks curiously, looking at Merlin for confirmation.

The manservant nods and smiles. "He did… and I do seem to recall that he told me to brace myself for the inevitable horror that is to come, most likely from the King himself, if you feel the same way that I do about you."

"Wait," Morgana says with narrowed eyes. "You never actually told me how you feel about me."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow at that. "What? But I just told you."

"Not quite." Morgana grins, raising a perfect brow at him. "I want to hear you say exactly what you feel for me."

Merlin looks at the Physician pleadingly, then rolls his eyes and huffs as Gaius is already raising his hands in surrender and rising quickly from his seat.

"I may be old, but not nearly as old enough to find this conversation useful in my future; however short that may be." the physician quickly turns on his heel and leaves his chambers.

Merlin stares for a long moment before clearing his throat and looking over at Morgana, who is still grinning widely at him. "So…" he trails off and looks at the bag that Gaius brought with him and left by the door where he dropped it earlier. "Tea?"

Morgana laughs as she grabs Merlin by the front of his shirt and pulls him towards her. "I think I want to know how you feel about me first." she looks up at him through her lashes, loving the fact that he's so much taller than her. It makes her feel like she belongs there, standing in front of him forever.

Merlin couldn't help but smile as he raises his hand and takes her face in it. He pulls her closer, wrapping his free arm around her waist as he closes his eyes and rests his forehead against her. In a soft whisper, he finally speaks. "I've loved 5 people in my entire life. My mother, for being the best mother any boy could ask for. Gaius, for being the first father figure I could look up to. Arthur, for being his usual, prat-like, idiotic self and being kind of like a brother to me. Gwen, for being one of the nicest, sincerest, and most understanding friend ever… but the one person who managed to steal every single piece of my heart, the one person I love more than anything in this world, the one person who makes me feel like so much more than a simple manservant," Merlin smiles and presses his lips lightly against Morgana's. "… is you."

Morgana's heart feels as if it would explode with joy in that moment as she looks up at Merlin with a tearful, loving gaze. "You love me?"

The manservant nods. "How could I ever feel otherwise?"

Morgana throws her arms around Merlin's neck and pulls him into a soul searing kiss. After several long moments, they finally pull away, and in a breathy whisper, Morgana says ever so softly, "I love you too, Merlin."

Merlin closes his eyes, smiling happily. "That's all I could ever want."

Morgana grins up at him with a teasing smile. "So you wouldn't want to... do other things with me?"

The manservant's eyes widen, realizing what she's suggesting. "I mean... I- of course I want to. I want a lot of things, but if all you could give me was your love, I would be content with that."

Morgana smiles at him and cocks her head to the side. "I guess it's a good thing that I can and will give you more than just my love." she says secretively. "But all in due time. There are still a few things we must get through and discuss first."

Merlin nods in agreement, his eyes suddenly growing serious as he looks down at her and smiles. "I told you before that there's a tie between two of the most beautiful things I've ever seen."

The King's ward nods in thought. "You did."

"You're definitely more beautiful than the other thing."

Morgana raises her eyebrows curiously. "And what's the other thing?"

Merlin sighs and looks away. "It's complicated, and takes time to explain, so I'm not going to do that right now. But I promise you, when all of this is over, I will tell you everything."

The King's ward nods as she leans up and kisses him lightly on the lips again and smiles. She could really get used to this. Just the feeling of being so close to him makes her heart flutter insanely in her chest. "Good… I would love to break away from this horrible nightmare of an engagement to the fake Lord Borin." she smiles as she pulls away and looks into Merlin's bright blue eyes. "Will you help me?"

"For you?" Merlin grins, "I will do anything."

…

Arthur looks around cautiously as he leads the impostor Lord Borin down a secret passageway that he and Merlin had discovered a while ago when they saw Gwaine stumbling down there one night. He turns right, walking quickly but quietly, occasionally looking behind him to make sure that the impostor Lord Borin is still following him, and also to make sure that they weren't being followed by any of Uther's guards. For this plan to work, he needs to get the impostor out of the castle to buy Merlin some time to sneak into his chambers and search it for the Stone of Mortem.

The Prince stops abruptly as several guards walk right past him, not even noticing the two shadows in the darkness. After several moments, Arthur sighs and continues down the passageway until they finally reach a fork. The Prince leads the impostor down to the left and out of the castle walls.

As they make their way down into town, Arthur reaches into the pocket of his trousers and pulls out a small object. He drops it onto the ground as he and the impostor make their way towards the tavern.

Arthur actually grins when they enter the crowded tavern, already abuzz with chatter and drunk laughter. He turns around, facing the impostor and opening his arms out wide. "Welcome to the tavern… also known as Gwaine's home."

"Gwaine?" the impostor asks.

"Ah…" Arthur grins. "One of my best Knights. I suspect he's already here, or will be here in a little while. I'll introduce you to him when he arrives, but in the meantime, lets grab a freshly brewed tankard of mead, shall we?"

The Prince looks around subtly, careful not to look too obvious as he looks for Gwaine. He really hopes that Merlin will be able to find that stone in the impostors chambers, and quick. Otherwise, the entire world could be doomed.

Merlin ducks quickly into a nearby corridor, Gwaine hot on his heels as a few guards emerge from down the hall. Turning to the knight, the manservant whispers, "If we get caught, do you know what to say?"

Gwaine nods and smirks at him. "Of course. I'll just say that Lord Borin requested your services."

Merlin glares at the knight. "Just say that Lord Borin asked me to fix a mite problem."

"What if it's Lord Borin who catches us?"

Merlin shrugs, "Then tell him he has a mite problem, and I'm fixing it."

When they arrive in front of Lord Borin's chambers, Gwaine takes his place by the door to keep watch, acting as a guard while Merlin slips inside the room to look for the Stone of Mortem. Arthur had described it as a green, medium sized stone with some sort of ancient runes etched into it. The manservant moves quickly, looking under the mattress, under the bed, in the dressers, drawers, cabinets, and safety bins. A half hour goes by until Merlin finds himself standing by the door, staring out over the entire expanse of the room. He realizes with a sinking feeling, that the stone is not in the chambers. The only other place it could be, would be with the impostor himself. Huffing in disappointment, Merlin opens the door and sticks his head out. Gwaine turns around with a hopeful look, only to see the manservant shaking his head in disappointment.

"It's not here."

Gwaine sighs and looks worriedly down the corridor. "We have nothing."

Merlin nods, "Yeah… I'll keep looking for a bit longer. You should head down to the tavern and tell Arthur."

"Should I let them leave the tavern?" Gwaine asks worriedly.

Merlin nods. "I just want to do a quick double check. I'll be out before you even get to the tavern."

The knight leaves quickly, leaving Merlin to go through Lord Borin's things again. After double checking several areas in the room until he comes to a halt at a box in the corner. He'd been so busy trying to find a stone, that he hadn't even noticed anything else. Particularly, the oddly familiar looking cloak poking out of the box. Merlin hurries to it, pulling the box open and taking out the cloak. Merlin's eyes are wide in utter shock when he sees an insignia that did not belong to Mercia, or even Cearleon, but rather, to the Kingdom of Ergyng.

Merlin pushes the cloak back into the box and turns to go to the door, but he stops in his tracks as the sound of footsteps approaches. Merlin makes a quick mental decision and dives under the large bed, making sure that his feet aren't poking out from under the bed, just as the door swings open, and he catches sight of a figure entering the room. It doesn't take much time for him to figure out that the person is female if the hem of the dress she's wearing is any indication. A dress that he's seen before, on the Princess of Ergyng herself.

…

A/N: Hope you all liked this chapter! I tried not to be sappy, but I think Merlin and Morgana deserve a bit of sappiness in this story. Next chapter, Princess Ophelia makes her first move in trying to eliminate Morgana, and Morgana's faux wedding to the Lord Borin impostor. Thank you for reading, and leave a review! I love you all for your wonderful reviews on the last chapter. I apologize for not replying to some, but I think you all would rather read a chapter update rather than a reply to your review. I'll be updating "The Art of Falling" next!

-McDiggin'It


	15. Chapter 15

Title: He is Mine

Chapter Fifteen:

...

It's nearly midnight when Arthur decides it's time to move the plan into action.

He was slightly discouraged by the news that Gwaine delivered, but he wasn't about to just give up. He has a backup plan, but he's not sure it would work if Merlin doesn't complete the sedative. At this point, they have no solid evidence that Lord Borin is an impostor and a thief. He'd thought of telling his father about the missing Stone of Mortem, but knowing his father, he would not believe that it was Lord Borin's doing, and would eventually find someone else to blame if they can't prove it as so. And they simply don't have the time to worry about someone else. On top of that, his father would never believe that Lord Borin isn't really who he says he is. His ego wouldn't allow for people to see that he'd been tricked by a mere thief.

Nodding to the Knight, Arthur watches as Gwaine gets up out of his chair and leaves the tavern.

Arthur waits a few minutes, then slaps the impostor on the back and smiles at him. "Ready to head back?"

The man nods and drains the rest of his tankard before getting to his feet. He wobbles slightly before gaining his balance and chuckling to himself. Arthur hides a smile as he leads the man out of the crowded place. They head up towards the same passage they'd used to get out of the castle.

Arthur takes several deep breaths, bracing himself for what's to come. As expected, just as they make it to the secret entrance, a group of cloaked figures emerge from the dark alleyway just beyond the area where they were standing.

In a few seconds, Arthur and the impostor are surrounded by a dozen cloaked and hooded figures.

"What is this?!" The impostor hisses.

Arthur pretends to be on high alert as he unsheathes his sword. "Show yourselves." He says in a menacing tone.

One of the figures steps forward, but doesn't reveal himself. "We've been informed by someone who will remain anonymous, that one of you has committed treason against the King... such an offense is punishable by death."

"Lies!" The impostor spat. "Do you know who we are?"

The cloaked figure speaks again. "We know the Prince... you, however, are a foreigner to us."

"I demand that you let us through!" Arthur chimes in. "I am your Prince, and you will obey me!"

The cloaked figure then turns to face Arthur and replies, "You are the Prince, indeed... but we do not follow orders from you."

"And who are your orders from?" The impostor demands.

The cloaked figure then turns towards the impostor. "We are under no obligation to tell you anything." With that, the cloaked figure throws a handful of white powder at Arthur, causing the Prince to collapse completely and drop his sword. The Lord Borin impostor panics, making for the gap between two of the cloaked figures, but only ends up getting hit over the head with something hard. The man goes down, immediately enveloped in darkness.

The cloaked figures exchange looks before one of them kicks the impostors foot, checking to see if he's really unconscious. "He's out cold." The cloaked figure says.

One by one, they throw back their hoods and one of them nudges Prince Arthur with his sheathed sword. "You can get up now, Princess."

Arthur opens his eyes and sits up, wiping away some of the white powder on his face. "You didn't have to use the entire stock of flour, Gwaine." The Prince gripes.

The Knight grins as he looks around at some of his friends from the tavern. "As promised, a free drink on the Prince."

Arthur rolls his eyes and nods towards the large stone by the entrance where he dropped it earlier. "Your reward is by that stone."

Gwaine goes to it, grinning widely and then whistling as he picks up a small, solid gold bar. He throws it to one of the men and nods. "It's worth more than enough for all of you."

The man grins toothily and nods at the Knight before looking at the Prince and bowing. "Your grace." The group disperses as Gwaine and Arthur haul up the unconscious impostor and carries him in through the secret passageway.

"Now what?" Gwaine asks curiously as they walk through one of the many tunnels.

Arthur grunts as he sidesteps a pile of garbage. "Now we make sure he doesn't flee in the middle of the night." The Prince grins over at Gwaine. "I'll tie him up, and you go see if Sir Leon and Sir Percival have returned from Ceaerleon."

"Why don't you call _me_ Sir?" Gwaine asks curiously. "I'm a Knight too, you know? Is it because you met me in a tavern?"

Arthur smiles. "You're many things, Gwaine. A Loyal man, a drunk, an idiot, and a friend. You don't need a title in front of your name to prove that you're all of those things and more."

Gwaine chuckles and points a finger at the Prince. "I see what you did there."

"Yes, but to be honest, I don't put the word 'Sir' in front of your name because you're mostly an idiot. An idiot I met in a tavern." The Prince smirks.

Gwaine laughs and shakes his head. He sets down the impostors legs once they reach the small opening through one of the tunnels.

"I'll be back soon." The Knight informs the Prince and takes the roll of rope he'd brought with him, handing it to the Prince, before hurrying down the path towards the Castle.

...

Merlin breathes slowly and quietly, hoping Princess Ophelia will be above looking under the bed. He wonders what in the world she's doing in Lord Borin's chambers. To his knowledge, they don't know each other, so what is going on here?

"Lord Borin." The Princess calls quietly.

Merlin's eyebrows furrow in confusion. _Why is she looking for Lord Borin? They don't even know each other._ He wonders _._

"Lord Borin?" The Princess calls again, a little louder.

Merlin watches the hem of her dress as she moves from one corner to another. After a few long moments, he hears a huff of air and the Princess walks towards the bed, turning and sitting down on it. Merlin closes his eyes as the bed springs creak, and he hopes to all the world that the Princess doesn't ever think of looking under the bed. A mite problem is no excuse for him to be under the bed and not making himself known the moment she came in.

He waits a long while, seemingly forever before he watches as the Princess pulls her feet up off the floor. The bed creaks some more in various places, indicating that the Princess has laid down on the bed. Merlin's eyebrows furrow even further as he tries to figure out why the Princess of Ergyng is in a thief's chambers. On his bed.

After several long minutes, Merlin notices the sound of Princess Ophelia's breath begin to even out, and Merlin slowly slides out from under the bed. He moves quietly towards the door, careful not to bump into anything. As he gets to the door, he takes one last look at the Princess. He knows she will be leaving soon and he has to tell her his final decision on her proposal. His chest aches a little, knowing that she won't be happy with his answer. She has been nothing but a good friend and listener over the past couple of days. It won't be easy, but it must be done.

...

Gwaine doesn't take long, returning in just under 15 minutes with the two other Knights.

Arthur grins at his best Knights as they haul up the unconscious and blindfolded impostor.

"I'll be back soon." He tells the three and gives them a stern look. "Remember to keep to the plan, and make sure he has no idea where he is."

Sir Leon nods, his expression turning serious and concerned. "You will be alright, sire?"

Arthur nods and smiles at them. "Of course."

As he makes his way back out into the city, the Prince can't help but wonder if things will go as planned tomorrow. So far, part of their plan has fallen through... but it isn't over until they've all convinced his father that Lord Borin isn't Lord Borin at all, and his crimes are laid bare.

...

Merlin runs through the corridors, looking left and right for any guards. As he comes up near Arthur's chambers, he spots Gwaine, Leon, and Percival, carrying a body towards the dungeons. Merlin stops abruptly, realizing that they've resorted to Plan B, meaning he should have the sedative ready by tomorrow morning.

The manservant turns back the other way and runs towards his and Gaius' chambers. "Damn it." He mutters under his breath. The white vein kratom he was able to collect is not nearly as dry as it should be, so he has no idea if it will have any effect on the impostor.

He pants heavily as he arrives to Gaius' chambers and pushes the door open. He finds Morgana and Gwen there, but no Gaius. "Where's Gaius?"

"Doing his rounds." Gwen replies. "Have you found the stone?" Gwen asks hopefully as Morgana rushes to Merlin with a cup of water.

Merlin shakes his head as he drains the contents of the cup. "Thank you." He says breathlessly and wipes his mouth on the back of his hand. "It's not there."

Morgana frowns and chews her lip while Gwen sighs worriedly. The latter shakes her head. "That means he's sent his men ahead with the stone to whoever sent him to steal it."

Merlin nods and looks at Morgana. "There's something else."

Morgana's eyebrows furrow in question. "What is it?"

"Before I left the impostor's chambers, Princess Ophelia came in looking for him."

Gwen and Morgana exchange looks before Morgana pulls Merlin towards the seat by the table. "I have to tell you something."

Merlin nods to her and smiles. He still can't get over the fact that she actually loves him. But that's a thought for another time. "What is it?" He asks curiously.

Morgana couldn't resist running her fingers through the manservants hair. "I've been suspicious about Princess Ophelia from the start, so... a few days ago, I was looking through her things when her chest in the corner of my chambers began glowing. I opened it and found a hand mirror." She shakes her head. "I can only put it down to magic, because when I turned it around, I saw a woman inside it."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow at that. "A woman?"

Morgana nods. "Blonde hair, blue eyes... beautiful. She disappeared as soon as she saw me."

Merlin shakes his head as if trying to clear it. "Wait... you're saying Princess Ophelia has magic?"

Morgana shrugs, "Its the only explanation. I knew she was planning something, so the next day, I followed her. She went up to the east tower with the hand mirror, and she began chanting in a different language. She started talking to the woman in the mirror, and I heard them discussing something about bringing you to Ergyng and making sure I don't interfere with their plans."

Merlin's eyes widen into saucers at that. "They planned to get rid of you?"

Morgana nods. "There's a reason why they want you in Ergyng, but I can't figure out why."

Merlin grows silent as he bites his lip. He knew there must've been a reason why Princess Ophelia was so interested in him, but of course, his greatest weakness is seeing good in people where there is none. He continues to ponder on this new information, wondering exactly what it is that Princess Ophelia wants him to be in Ergyng for. What with everything that has happened, he certainly wouldn't rule out that Princess Ophelia know's his secret about his magic… and there's the woman Morgana saw… "The woman in the mirror... you said she was blonde with blue eyes?" he queries as he runs a quick mental check on all the blonde and blue-eyed women he's seen in his life.

Morgana nods, "Yes. Why, does that mean anything to you?"

Merlin thinks at a hundred miles a minute, piecing every part of this giant puzzle together before it finally clicks. "Nimueh."

"What?" Morgana and Gwen ask in unison.

Merlin looks at the two and winces at his slip-up. He gets up and begins pacing around, muttering under his breath several times before he finally begins relieving the women of their confusion. "It's all connected."

"What is?" Gwen asks.

"Nimueh, the impostor, Princess Ophelia, the stone, all of it!" Merlin shakes his head and widens his eyes as he tries to let it all sink in.

"Wait," Gwen says confusedly. "How are they all connected?"

"And what is this Numb-way?" Morgana asks confusedly.

"Nimueh." Merlin corrects. "I might be wrong, but I highly doubt that, and if I'm right, then the woman you saw in the mirror, is a powerful sorcerer." He finally stops pacing to explain his theoretical thoughts. "This whole thing, is more likely than not, for revenge."

"Revenge?" Morgana asks confusedly.

Merlin nods to her. "Nimueh hates Uther for the great purge. And if she gets her hands on that stone, we- we're all as good as dead."

Morgana's eyes widen in concern. "The stone in the hands of someone without magic like Uther, killed off dragons and sorcerers alike."

Gwen swallows hard and stares off into a distance. "I can't imagine what someone with magic could do with it if she gets it."

Merlin nods in full agreement. "And since the stone is not in the fake Lord Borin's chambers, it can only mean it's on its way to her _now_."

Morgana cocks her head to the side and gives Merlin a curious look. "You said it's all connected… how?"

The manservant runs his hand through his hair and begins recapping his mental theories. "As you know, I've spent a bit of time in Princess Ophelia's company."

Morgana frowns and nods. "Yes, and please don't ever mention it."

Merlin snorts and quirks an eyebrow at her, "I only have eyes for you, Milady." he winks and Morgana smiles widely. Gwen clears her throat loudly, pulling the couple back to reality. Merlin clears his throat and continues, "anyways, Princess Ophelia mentioned something about a childhood friend she had, who somehow strayed out of his righteous life and into a more darker, less secure, and riskier path. However, before that transition, he was branded with the insignia of Ergyng on his right shoulder."

Morgana and Gwen both exchange confused looks. "What does this have to do with anything?"

Merlin nods and drops his voice. "When I was in the impostor's chambers, I saw a cloak with Ergyng's insignia on it… and like I told you, Princess Ophelia went looking for him, and then fell asleep in his bed while I was still under it."

Morgana and Gwen both shoot out of their seats simultaneously with alarmed looks. Morgana asks first, "You think the impostor is Princess Ophelia's childhood friend, and they might be working together?"

"Yes." The manservant replies. "Think about it. Princess Ophelia arrives in Camelot, probably tells Nimueh that you've been interfering with her plans to take me to Ergyng, so when Nimueh tells her to get rid of you, she recruits the help of her branded, felonious childhood friend, to disguise himself as a Lord of Mercia, and then come and whisk you away, on top of getting the stone. And the stone, I suspect, is to resurrect Nimueh."

"Wait, wait, wait." Gwen says with narrowed eyes. "Did you just say… 'resurrect'?"

Merlin nods at her. "She's one of the sorceresses Uther destroyed during the Great Purge."

Morgana shakes her head in further confusion. "That still tells us nothing about why they want you in Ergyng."

The manservant scratches his neck and looks warily at her. "I- I have to tell you something."

Morgana and Gwen exchange looks of worry at the nervous sound in Merlin's voice. "What is it?" Morgana asks softly. She knows this must've been the thing he said he would tell her when the time is right.

Merlin takes a deep breath before beginning with, "I have-". The door swings open suddenly, revealing Gaius with his chest of potions. "Gaius." Merlin looks the Physician up and down. "Done with your rounds?"

The elderly man looks at the two women in the room, bows towards Morgana, smiles at Gwen, then looks pointedly at Merlin. "I believe your... friend, is looking for you."

"Friend?" Merlin asks confusedly. "What friend?"

Gaius clears his throat and casts a side glance at the King's ward before looking back at his own ward. "The Princess of Ergyng."

Morgana's eyebrows furrow in distaste as she looks curiously at the Physician. "Where did you see her?"

"Oh, well... She was heading up to the east tower after she asked of Merlin's whereabouts."

Morgana shoots a look towards Merlin, who immediately catches on. Princess Ophelia in the East tower can only mean she's contacting Nimueh. This is his chance to find out exactly what's going on.

"Right." The manservant nods and looks at the women. "Perhaps I should head up there and see what she wants."

Gaius stares between the three. He doesn't know what they're up to, but he knows they're up to something... and he'd rather not know whatever it is they're trying to do.

Morgana and Gwen bid the elderly man a good night before following Merlin out into the stairwell. Morgana gives Merlin a wary look. "What are you going to do?"

Merlin offers her a smile. "I'm going to put an end to Princess Ophelia's plan to take me to Ergyng."

"How?" Gwen queries.

Merlin sighs softly, "I'm going to officially decline her offer to be with her."

Morgana tries not to smile, but she loses out to her joy. "If she had been an honest woman who truly cared for you, I would've felt bad about this..." she trails off and shrugs. "...but knowing that she's doing this for her own personal gain has taken away any sense of guilt I should be feeling at the fact that you're declining her offer."

Merlin nods. He admits, he had felt horrible when he made the decision of declining Princess Ophelia's offer, but now that he knows the real reason why she wanted him to be with her, he's not feeling so bad about it anymore. "I'll see you both soon." He says quietly.

Gwen nods and offers a comforting smile while Morgana's expression remains blank. "Don't be too long. It's past midnight and we still haven't figured out how we're going to get that sedative you were working on."

Merlin nods, casting a side glance at Gwen, who smiles at him and turns away and pretends to look for something. This gives Merlin time to quickly place a peck on Morgana's cheek. When he pulls away, Morgana pulls him right back and kisses him on the lips before looking directly into his eyes.

"I love you." She whispers softly.

Merlin grins goofily at her. "I love you too." With those parting words, he takes the stairs two at a time and heads towards the East tower.

He moves quickly but quietly as he reaches the last flight of stairs in the East tower. He stops abruptly when he hears a hushed voice, speaking to someone.

"...you don't trust me."

"Princess, I'm not stupid. I've seen this many times before. Woman is sent to kill man, but she's weak and instead, falls in love with man and decides not to kill man."

"That's not true!"

"Then why haven't you made any progress?"

Princess Ophelia sighs heavily and shakes her head. "I have one more day."

"You waited until the last day to put your plan into motion?"

Merlin tries not to storm into the tower and yell 'Aha!'. If that voice isn't Nimueh's, then he's not Merlin. He's sure more than ever now that Princess Ophelia is dealing with dark magic... but for what? What does she wish to gain from an evil sorceress?

"Look, I'll get you Merlin like I promised I would."

"And the King's ward?"

Merlin perks up at that, eyebrows furrowing and nose scrunching defensively.

"I've already taken care of her."

Merlin swallows hard. What does that even mean? He'd just seen Morgana a few minutes ago.

"How?"

The Princess huffs, "Tonight, when she drinks the potion she thought the Physician left in her chambers, she will have but 12 hours before the poison completely spreads inside her body, and ultimately kills her."

Merlin's eyes widen like saucers as he backs up slowly from the wall and towards the stairs. When he turns, he does not care about getting caught eavesdropping, or not confronting Princess Ophelia, or anything else. All he cares about, all that matters to him, is stopping Morgana from drinking that potion.

...

When he barges into Morgana's chambers, he did not stop to think about whether she was decent. He really wasn't... that is, until he found himself completely at a loss for words, staring at a surprised and half naked goddess staring back at him with widened eyes.

"Well..." Morgana looks down at herself and bites her lip before glancing back at the adorably shocked manservant. "I had pictured being naked in front of you at a much more appropriate and romantic moment, but I suppose I can't have everything the way I want it."

Heat rises up Merlin's face as he blinks rapidly, tearing his eyes away from Morgana's chest to search her chambers. "The potion." He says quickly.

"What?" The King's ward asks confusedly as she goes behind her changing screen to continue putting on her sleeping gown.

"The potion." Merlin repeats, "where is it?"

Morgana's hands still over her sleeping gown as she peeks around the screen. "What are you talking about?"

Merlin finally spots the small bottle on the table in the corner, and his heart sinks when he sees that it's empty. He crosses the room and picks up the bottle, pulling out the stopper, and taking a quick whiff of it. He closes his eyes as he tries to pick up any specific scents, but it's nearly impossible. Turning to Morgana, he shows her the bottle in his hand and says, "Please tell me you didn't drink this." His eyes are pleading and his voice his low and hoarse. "Please tell me you accidentally poured it out."

Morgana snorts, "I drank it... what are you on about?" She asks with a giggle. She crosses the room, noticing the color drain out of Merlin's face. "What's going on?" She goes to place her hands on the manservants shoulders, but he's quick to pull away. Her heart sinks as she studies his features. Had he changed his mind about accepting Princess Ophelia's offer? Had he realized that he's not really in love with her and is actually in love with the Princess of Ergyng? "Merlin, what's going on?"

Merlin shakes his head furiously and swallows hard. He has no idea what to do, because not only does he not know what poison Princess Ophelia used, he has no clue if it's even curable! Bile rises up in the back of his throat, and he doubles over as the feeling of utter uselessness consumes him.

By this time, Morgana is more than a little worried. She places her hand on the manservants shoulder and looks worriedly at him. "Merlin, you're scaring me. What happened?"

The manservant swallows down his worries and fears before standing back up to face the woman he has grown to love with every fiber of his being. Now is not the time to sob and worry. "The potion you drank was not from Gaius, it's from Princess Ophelia."

"What..." Morgana trails off as she realizes what Merlin is trying to tell her. "Poison." She whispers.

Merlin nods and tries to keep his tears at bay, but it's useless. "We can find a cure. I just need to get you to Gaius so he can figure out what poison you drank."

Morgana nods as she lets Merlin drag her towards the door. A mountain of emotions begin to form and grow inside her as they hurry down the staircase leading to the Physician's chambers. She's firstly, furious at Princess Ophelia. Oh the woman will get what's coming to her when or if she sees her again. Second, she's worried of what this poison could do to her. She could die! And finally, she's terrified of never being with Merlin. She had dreamed of a life with him, planned a future with him, and thought of all the wonderful moments they were going to share when all of this is over. Now, she might not even see him tomorrow?!

Merlin squeezes Morgana's hand lightly as they reach the door to Gaius' chambers. He turns and looks her in the eye as he caresses her face. "On my life, I will find a cure and save you, Milady."

Morgana couldn't help but smile at the manservant. She knows how devoted and loving he can be. She knows that he's one of the very few people in this world who never gives up... but poison is a race against time, and she's not sure this is a race that either of them can win. "Thank you, my love."

Merlin nods, his eyes flickering down to her lips. Before he could even lean down and kiss her, Morgana is already turning her head away.

"The poison might still linger on my lips."

The manservant instead, leans forward and presses his lips firmly against Morgana's cheek. "I love you." He whispers wholeheartedly before pulling Morgana into Gaius' chambers.

...

A/N: I feel like a horrible human being for taking forever to update this. Just know that I haven't given up on any of my fics. My life has just been a rollercoaster over the past couple of weeks. I'm sorry this is so short as well. I was going to hold off on this chapter and add a little more of the story into it, but I decided that you guys deserve a little something to let you know I'm still alive and writing. I will try my best to update as soon as possible! For the next chapter, I'll try to wrap everything together in it. Thank you so much for reading! Reviews are love!

-McDiggin'It


	16. Chapter 16

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Sixteen:

...

Gaius is shocked by Merlin's revelation of Princess Ophelia's true intentions. He had thought she would be one of the good ones. But as it turns out, he'd been wrong.

He orders the Kings's ward to have a seat as he looks through his things for his monaural listening device so he could listen to her heart beat and breathing patterns. After several minutes, he stands back and frowns.

Gaius's brow is furrowed as he then checks the inside of Morgana's mouth, ears, nostrils, and eyes. For the first time since he became a physician, he has no clue what he's dealing with. Usually, there'd be sweating, discoloration of the skin, dilated pupils, abnormal breathing and heartbeat patterns, and even obvious splotches of rash on the skin. But Morgana shows none of the signs for the poisons he's familiar with... it's clear to him, either this is a poison he has never seen or heard of before, or there's something else he's not aware of.

He sighs heavily as he shakes his head, knowing full well that he's stumped... and Merlin's constant pacing isn't helping at all. "Would you stop moving around so much?" The elderly man snaps at his ward. "You're going to walk craters into our floor."

Merlin sighs heavily and stops to chew at his fingernails. "So? What is it?"

Gaius opens and closes his mouth several times before sighing as well as his shoulders slump. "I'm not sure... perhaps the poison is working slowly and the symptoms haven't begun to show."

Merlin's mouth is agape as he stares disbelievingly at the Physician. "Are you— are you telling me you don't know?"

Gaius nods morosely. "She's not showing any signs of having been poisoned."

Morgana stares between the two, not entirely sure of what to feel. On one hand, it could be a good thing if the poison is moving slower than expected. On the other hand, the poison could be one without any signs or symptoms to point at its source, in which case, she's definitely doomed.

Merlin yanks at his own hair and makes a frustrated groan. "Gaius, of all the times to not know something, _now_ is quite simply the worst time for it!"

"I know." Gaius says frustratedly. "But my diagnoses are based on my findings. In the Lady Morgana's case, there is nothing to find."

Merlin begins pacing again, his eyes on the floor and his bottom lip between his teeth as he tries to think of a way to find out what poison Morgana drank. He then stops and looks at Gaius. "Would it help if I brought the bottle that contained the poison to you?"

Gaius' eyes widen at that and smacks his forehead rather harshly. "Yes! Why didn't I think of—"

"I'll be back!" Merlin interrupts and sprints out of the Physician's chambers.

Morgana sighs and looks at Gaius with a wary glance. "He's more upset about this than _I_ am." She mutters.

Gaius smiles softly at her and nods. "That's Merlin. Always worrying more about others than said others do about themselves."

Morgana smiles at that and cocks her head to the side in wonder. "Gaius, do you know anything about Merlin's past?"

The elderly physician turns away quickly and busies himself with putting a pot of water on the fire. "What do you mean, Milady?"

Morgana bites her lip and glances at the door. "I believe he's hiding something... something big. Possibly bad, but I have a hard time believing that because of the kind of person he is... he's too good."

Gaius hums as he looks through his chest of potions, "Well, he has always been quite the oddball. He grew up without ever knowing his father, so all he had was his mother. Great woman she is. She would love you, Milady."

Morgana grins at that. "She must be absolutely wonderful and brilliant to have raised a son like Merlin."

The elderly man smiles and nods. "Indeed she is." He inwardly sighs in relief at the change of subject, and for good measure pushes the topic further away from Morgana's question of Merlin's past. "She used to write to me when Merlin was only a toddler. Told me stories of how Merlin would eat literally anything he finds within arms reach."

Morgana laughs, imagining a cute little blue-eyed baby Merlin eating everything he finds around him. "Shocking," she says jokingly. "... what with his thin build." She grins because she's oddly and extremely attracted to Merlin's thinness. Most women would find him pitiful. She just finds him damned sexy, especially since he's unaware of it. The thought of a baby Merlin makes her wonder what their own child would be like if they ever have one. The thought seems almost too far away, and yet, when she thinks about it, all she sees is a beautiful little baby boy with her eyes and Merlin's everything else. She sighs dreamily and closes her eyes.

Her daydream is shattered by the sound of a door slamming open and she opens her eyes to find Merlin rushing back in with the potion bottle of poison she drank

earlier. "I've got it." He says to Gaius and hands the bottle over to the Physician.

As Gaius moves towards his workstation, Merlin turns to Morgana and stares at her.

He offers a tiny smile, for he knows he hasn't got anything else to offer, and it makes his heart ache. "We'll find a cure... even if I have to force one out of Princess Ophelia."

Morgana smiles lovingly at the manservant. "I know you will, Merlin... you're a better person than anyone I know."

Merlin sighs and frowns slightly. "I'm not all that good... but I vow to you that for as long as I have a breath in my body, I will protect you from any and all harm."

Morgana couldn't help her emotions, tears welling up in her eyes as she smiles at the man she has come to love wholeheartedly. With no thought at all, she leans up and pulls the manservant into an embrace, resting her head against his rapidly beating heart. Closing her eyes, she inhales his scent of fresh laundry, soap, a hint of lemon, and... well, Merlin.

"Nightshade."

Morgana pulls away to look questioningly at Gaius.

"What?" Merlin queries, having been too consumed with emotions to hear what Gaius has said.

"Nightshade." Gaius repeats morosely. "The poison Princess Ophelia used... The scent is faint, but I'm fairly sure it's Nightshade."

"And the cure?" Merlin asks worriedly.

Gaius shakes his head slowly as a look of uncertainty crosses over his features. "I do not know there is one."

Merlin's ears begin to ring as the room goes silent. His breath is loud in his ears and his heart is beating wildly in his chest as he stares at the Physician. "What do you mean there isn't one?"

Gaius looks sadly between the young couple. "There is no known cure for the Nightshade. Many great physicians have tried and failed to make an antidote for the poison."

Morgana swallows hard, her vision growing blurry with her tears as she looks up at Merlin. "It's okay." She whispers, though she doesn't quite believe that it will be.

Merlin almost immediately shakes his head. "No... no it isn't." He takes her face in his hands and shakes his head again. "I promised you a cure and I will find one."

"But tomorrow is—"

"Nothing else matters to me, Morgana." Merlin cuts in softly. "Nothing... I will find that cure. I will not stop and I will not fail." With those last words, he kisses her forehead, asks Gaius to keep an eye on her, and then disappears from the chambers.

...

Dawn approaches as Merlin runs through the forest of trees, his legs moving nonstop and his lungs burning as he dodges low branches and avoids bushes. Just when black spots begin to blot his vision, he finally reaches the clearing he's been trying to get to.

Falling to his knees, the young warlock inhales mouthfuls of air as he looks up to the skies. His legs are jelly and his lungs feels as if they are about to collapse in his chest. With a deep breath, he opens his mouth and lets out a roar of words in the language of the old religion, calling on Kilgharrah.

It's only a matter of minutes before he finally sees the dark shadow of the dragon approaching from the East. It lands in front of him, bowing its head low towards the last surviving Dragonlord. "You called for me, young warlock. What is it you seek?"

Merlin pushes himself off the ground and looks at the Great Dragon. "Take me to the Crystal Cave."

The dragon is silent for a moment as it stares at the warlock. "The King's Ward has been poisoned then."

Merlin's eyes grow wide as he stares at the dragon. "How did you..." He trails off as a realization hits him. "You knew." His brow furrows in anger as he glares at the Great dragon. "Why didn't you tell me?!" He bellows angrily.

Kilgharrah shakes its head and sits back on his hind legs. "I'm a dragon, Merlin. Not your messenger. It is also none of my business what happens to the people of Camelot. I know things. Things you've never even dreamed of, and yet... I'm in no hurry to tell you what they are because despite the fact that you're a good and compassionate warlock, it is also your goodness and compassion that leads you to do things you may one day regret."

"I can't lose her!" Merlin shrieks. His voice his hoarse and his throat is dry.

The dragon sighs, knowing that nothing he says will change the warlocks mind. "I will take you to the Crystal Cave." Kilgharrah says sternly. "But I cannot guarantee that you will find what you are searching for."

Merlin wastes no more time in climbing onto the dragons back before they take off into the sky. He's desperate. He knows this... all he has is magic and he'll need a lot of it.

It doesn't take them very long to get to their destination, arriving at the mouth of the cave in just under an hour. Merlin jumps from the dragons back and stumbles abruptly at the surge of power from within the cave. He steadies himself, turning to look at Kilgharrah. "It's heavy."

The dragon nods slightly. "The birthplace of magic is still the one place where it's strongest. You will feel overwhelmed with the power here."

Merlin nods, "I guess I should hurry then." As he moves towards the darkness of the cave, Kilgharrah calls to him, and he stops. Turning to look at the dragon, the young warlock already has an idea of what it's going to say.

"The Lady Morgana's fate is unclear to me, but I'm sure more than anything that this isn't something you should interfere with."

Merlin merely blinks at the dragon. "Whether the gods and goddesses deemed her unworthy of living past today, I will not stand by and let her die." He sighs and glances into the cave before looking back at the dragon. "I value her life more than I value my own, Kilgharrah." His eyes and voice are pleading. "If I just let her die, I might as well die with her."

Kilgharrah says nothing more as he watches the young warlock continue further and further into the cave until he's completely gone from sight.

When he arrives in the midst of crystals, he's utterly overwhelmed with the weight of power, beating down on him. But it wasn't a bad weight. It was sort of like a presence so strong, he could feel it everywhere around him, and even inside him.

"Hello, Merlin."

The young warlock gasps, his eyes darting towards a dark corner of the cave, where he sees the figure of a tall woman emerge. He squints, trying to catch any familiar features, but he can't. "Who are you?" He takes a step forward and stops. "How long have you been here?"

"I am the keeper of magic, the protector of the Crystal cave." The woman replies. "I was here when magic was born, and I will continue to be here until it ends."

"Ends?" Merlin asks confusedly. "What— what do you mean by 'end'?"

The woman steps into the dim torchlit area, and Merlin could just barely make out the shape of her face. "One day, long after this world fades to another, magic will cease to exist."

Merlin shakes his head in utter confusion. "I don't understand. What do you mean? Like all the sorcerers, warlocks, druids, and magical creatures will die?"

The woman shakes her head. "They will fade away along with this world... unless..."

"Unless what?" Merlin asks inquisitively.

"Unless someone stops it."

"It?" Merlin shakes his head confusedly. "What is _it_?"

The woman suddenly turns and touches one of the glowing crystals.

Merlin stares, waiting for something remarkable to happen, but... nothing. "What—." He cuts himself off when the entire cave suddenly begins to quake with the force of a thousand dragons, and the ground beneath him crumbles, giving way to a vision, projected around him as if it were real.

Fire consumes the earth, the forest, the mountains. All bodies of water, completely dried up. Innocent men, women, children, murdered and left rotting along the streets of... Camelot. In the castle, stands a woman, smiling at the chaos around her. Merlin squints, trying to see who the woman is. Dark hair, pale skin, green eyes... The warlock staggers back, landing on his backside as the vision evaporates into thin air. His heart hammers inside his chest, and his eyes well up with tears as he looks at the woman still standing in the same spot she's been when the vision began. Merlin couldn't even bring himself to ask.

"Yes, young warlock... the woman you love, will be the end of this world, and the beginning of a new one. She will also be your doom, if you do not make wise decisions."

Merlin shakes his head furiously. "No! I don't believe you. There has to be a mistake!"

"There is no mistake, Merlin."

Merlin continues to shake his head as the tears run down his face. "She doesn't even have magic. She— how can she cause all of that?"

The woman sighs, "Morgana was raised by Uther. A man who hates magic and anything resembling it... does it really surprise you that she would turn out to be just like him?"

Merlin roars with anger, "You're wrong! Morgana is _nothing_ like Uther. She's kind, and fair. Loving, and understanding. You cannot tell me she's evil!"

"I won't tell you what you won't hear... but I will tell you that the future is unclear. It always will be. It's not set in stone. It changes with every decision we make... now, you must make yours."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow as he stares at the woman. "What do you mean?"

"You must choose between the woman you love, and the destruction she'll bring."

Merlin shakes his head. "She's not that kind of person."

"I know that you are hurting. You've only just found love, and now it's being ripped from you." The woman then opens her arms, and the ground at Merlin's feet begins to peel away, revealing a small plant. "The root of this plant, coupled with fennel seeds boiled in wine, mugwort, and mallow, should provide you with the antidote you need."

Merlin immediately yanks the plant out of the ground and checks that the roots are still attached to it.

"Merlin."

The warlock looks at the woman and knows that she's about to rain even harder on his parade.

"The decisions we make today, will shape what happens tomorrow." She says quietly. "Choose wisely."

Merlin's jaw clenches as he hurries from the cave and towards the exit.

...

Tears cascade down his cheeks as Kilgharrah flies him back to Camelot. He had not been prepared for what the woman told him. When he'd came back out of the cave, Kilgharrah said nothing, and neither did he. He didn't have the strength to say or do anything. All he could do was cry.

When the Great dragon lands in the clearing where he'd been picked up, Merlin dismounts and stumbles onto the ground. He wipes his face on the sleeve of his shirt and looks up at the dragon. "Thank you." He says quietly.

The dragon bows its head towards the Dragonlord. "It is always a pleasure to serve you, young warlock."

Merlin couldn't even bring himself to smile. "Kilgharrah... I— I don't know what to do." He says desperately.

The dragon hums softly. "Even the most powerful hit a dead end, sometimes." He cocks his head to the side and sighs. "I do not know what you encountered in the Crystal cave, but I _do_ know, that something in there caused you a great deal of heartbreak. Even more than you went in with."

Merlin rubs his tired eyes. The Sun is just beginning to rise, and he has yet to complete the sleeping potion Arthur asked for. Suddenly, none of that matters to him anymore. He has a more serious dilemma, and he doesn't know what to do. He looks pleadingly at the dragon and shakes his head. "I can't choose... I went in there with one problem and came out with a whole new problem." His shoulders slump. "I'm tired, Kilgharrah. Its like I can't get a break. Every time I think I'm okay, something happens and my whole life falls apart."

"That is life, Merlin. Sometimes, it just feels like you'll never be free... but you must endure it. Picture the reason you live, and use that reason to fuel you. And if it doesn't work, then that isn't truly the reason you live."

Merlin stares at Kilgharrah as he pictures in his minds eye, the reason he lives. Before all of this, magic was the reason he lived. Without it, he is nothing... but now, when he pictures the reason he lives, he sees Morgana. He sees her beautiful eyes, staring back at him. Her breathtaking smile, flashing at him. His heart races at the mere thought of her, and he knows that she is the reason he lives. He looks up at Kilgharrah and wonders, "What if the reason I live, is also the reason I will die?"

The dragon rises to his full height, indicating his preparation for take off. "Then you will die, Merlin. This world exists infinitely. Everyone dies at some point. Even I. The question isn't in _when_ you die, it's in _how_ you die." With those parting words, the dragon soars into the skies and disappears within seconds.

...

The young warlock practically flies up the stairs and into Gaius' chambers. He finds Morgana, laying on a cot, staring at the ceiling. His heart feels as if it might explode, warring inside him about what to do. She looks at him and sits up quickly with hopeful eyes. Merlin blinks back tears as he looks at Gaius.

"Have you found an answer?" Gaius asks him.

Merlin looks at the Lady Morgana again before looking back at Gaius. "May I speak to you? In private?"

The elderly man looks confused as he nods his head and follows Merlin to the door. Merlin turns back and assures the Lady Morgana. "We'll just be a second."

As soon as they're outside and alone, Merlin holds up the small bag in his hands. "In this bag is a plant. You'll use the roots and combine them with fennel seeds boiled in wine, mugwort, and mallow. It should cure her."

Gaius stares confusedly at Merlin's face. "Why do you look like you don't really want to give me that bag?"

Merlin shakes his head as his breath quickens. "Morgana is going to turn evil in the future."

At this, Gaius stares at Merlin as if he'd just sprouted 3 extra heads and started dancing. "What?"

Merlin nods, and closes his eyes. "That's what I said."

"Who told you this?" Gaius asks curiously.

Merlin hangs his head and sighs wearily. "It doesn't matter."

Gaius blinks at the young warlock and reaches out to tap his shoulder. In the entire time he's known Merlin, he had never seen him look as downtrodden as he does now. "Are you absolutely sure?"

Merlin's eyes well up with tears and he quickly swipes them away with his hands. "I don't know… but—".

"Merlin?"

The warlock and the Physician both turn towards the voice, eyes wide as they meet Princess Ophelia's worried gaze.

"Is everything alright?" The Princess asks.

Merlin couldn't speak as he stares at her in anger. He has half the mind to damn everything to hell and strangle the life out of Princess Ophelia, but he knows that won't help anything. Gaius answers for the both of them with a half smile of politeness. "Yes, everything is… fine, Princess."

The Princess smiles and nods towards the elderly physician. "Good… that's good." she then looks at Merlin and asks softly, "May I speak with you?"

Merlin looks at Gaius, who immediately reaches over and takes the bag Merlin had brought with him. "I'll let you two talk." he says flatly before retreating back into his chambers.

Merlin says nothing as he looks expectantly at the Princess. "What is it you want, Ophelia?"

The Princess immediately notices the venom in Merlin's voice and stares confusedly at him. "Did— Did I do something wrong?"

Merlin couldn't stop himself. "I don't know, Princess. Did you?"

Princess Ophelia's eyebrows furrow at the warlock in confusion. "I— I don't know why you're upset with me, but I'm— I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" Merlin scoffs. "You're sorry?" he couldn't believe his ears. "Oh well that's just splendid, isn't it?" he throws his hands up in exasperation. "You're sorry, and that makes everything okay! You're sorry, and that takes back the poison, and everything you've been planning since the day you got here, right?"

Princess Ophelia's eyes suddenly grow as wide as saucers, and she takes a step back. "I didn't mean—".

"What? You didn't mean for this to happen?" Merlin laughs humorlessly. "I'm many things, but I'm not stupid. I heard you talking to Nimueh earlier in the East tower." he glares harshly at the blonde. "Yeah. I heard how you planned to poison the Lady Morgana, and then try and win me over so you can take me to Ergyng and let Nimueh have me."

"Merlin, I—".

"Don't even deny it, Ophelia." he hisses angrily.

"I'm not. I just—".

"No! I know why you were pretending to be interested in me, so—".

"MERLIN!" The Princess shouts angrily.

Merlin stops talking, his chest heaving with anger. "What?"

Princess Ophelia's eyes begin to fill with tears, and she shakes her head. "Please just let me explain."

Merlin stares at her, having not expected tears, and definitely not expecting an explanation. Slowly, he begins to calm down. "The truth." he says to her.

Princess Ophelia nods, "Okay." she takes a deep breath, before beginning. "On my last birthday, I received an anonymous gift from someone. It had no name, no place of origin, nothing. It was a small hand mirror, which I hardly ever used since I already owned about 5 hand mirrors." she pauses to take a breath, then continues. "One night, the hand mirror started glowing, and that was the first time I saw and spoke to Nimueh."

Merlin couldn't find any fault in her story so far, so he says nothing except nod.

"I thought she was my friend. Telling me about her magic and that she could help me with everything and anything I needed. She was nice and kind, and I was glad to have a friend." she shakes her head. "Then she told me that she could bring my mother back."

"From the dead?" Merlin asks.

She nods. "Yes… and I was so happy and excited, but… she wanted something in return." she looks up at Merlin again, her eyes beginning to fill to the brim with tears. "She wanted me to bring you to Ergyng."

Merlin shakes his head then, "That makes no sense. Why would she want me?"

Princess Ophelia looks pointedly at him. "Because you're the only warlock strong enough to stop her."

"Stop her from what?"

Princess Ophelia looks down, ashamed that she had ever agreed to help Nimueh. "From coming back, and destroying everything and everyone who had a hand in her downfall."

Merlin's eyes slowly grow wide as he stares at the Princess. "You agreed to help her still?"

"I didn't know!"

"What do you mean you didn't know?" Merlin hisses in disbelief.

"She told me that she wasn't going to tell me anything until I've made it here to Camelot, and that's when she slowly began to tell me bits and pieces of her plans. By the time I realized what I'd just gotten myself into, it was too late."

"Too late?" Merlin asks fearfully. "What do you mean 'too late'?"

Princess Ophelia shakes her head and actually lets out a tiny sob. "She's almost here."

"Here?"

The Princess nods. "She's on her way now."

Merlin shakes his head harshly. "How? I thought I was to be taken to Ergyng first."

Princess Ophelia nods. "You were."

"But?"

She inhales deeply. "When I kept putting off on bringing you to Ergyng, she figured out that I was never going to bring you with me, and she sent in an ex-friend of mine to get something else for her. Something that could give her more power than she ever had."

"The Stone of Mortem." Merlin nods.

Princess Ophelia nods. "My former friend had been wearing a disguise the entire time he was here. But then I figured out who he was while he was in the training grounds yesterday. He changed his face, name, and title, but he didn't change anything else. Including the insignia of Ergyng on his skin."

Merlin nods, slowly piecing everything together. "That's why you were in his chambers earlier."

"How did you—". she cuts herself off and shakes her head. "That's not important. I figured out why he was here, so I decided to try and talk him out of helping Nimueh. But when I got to his chambers, he wasn't there. I realized that he had probably already sent the Stone ahead, so I went back to the East tower." she sighs. "I knew what I had to do to convince Nimueh that I was going to get her what she wants, so I told her that I switched out Morgana's potion with some poison."

Merlin glares. "I know."

Princess Ophelia shakes her head at him. "I didn't poison her."

Merlin blinks rapidly, not sure if he heard that right. "Pardon?"

Princess Ophelia nods. "I did not poison her. When I saw Gaius earlier, I asked him of your whereabouts, and then made sure that he saw me go up the East tower. Nimueh wanted you to think that I was going to poison Morgana, so that you would—"

"Wait." Merlin's eyebrows furrow in confusion before realization hits him. "Gaius couldn't find any symptoms or effects of any poison." He stops and looks suspiciously at the Princess. "But he smelled Nightshade on the bottle."

Princess Ophelia shakes her head. "No. I used betony, which is a medicinal herb that has a similar scent to Nightshade."

The young warlock stares as his mind works at a hundred miles a minute. "Nimueh wanted me to _think_ the Lady Morgana was poisoned, so I would…"

"Yes." Princess Opheilia nods. "So you would go to the Crystal cave in search of a cure, but instead encounter Nimueh herself." she smiles. "But I'm here to warn you not to go."

"Wait, what?" Merlin's heart sinks as he stares at the Princess. "So I would encounter Nimueh?"

Princess Ophelia nods. "Yes…that's what she told me to do… I don't know why, but I reckon she planned something sinister at that cave." she looks the warlock up and down, taking note of the horrified look on his face. "What's wrong?"

"She knew."

"What?"

Merlin shakes his head. "She knew what you were planning to do and knew that you didn't poison Morgana."

Princess Ophelia's eyebrows furrow confusedly. "What are you talking about?"

Merlin suddenly turns, kicking the door to Gaius' chambers open and barging inside. "STOP!" He yells.

Gaius and the Lady Morgana both look up in bewilderment. "Stop what?" the physician asks confusedly.

Merlin looks from Gaius to the spoon in his hand, to the small droplet of clear liquid, running down the corner of Morgana's mouth. "Oh god, no." he hurries to Gaius and looks at the bag he'd been holding earlier with the plant. "Gaius, please tell me you didn't administer that plant into Morgana's potion."

Gaius blinks. "Of course I did. How else would I…" he trails off as Princess Ophelia suddenly walks into his chambers and stares wide eyed at the plant he'd left on his table. The Physician follows her line of sight with his eyes, and immediately knew something was wrong. He turns to look at Merlin, who looked like he was about to be sick, and says pleadingly, "Merlin… please tell me we didn't just administer a poisonous plant into the Lady Morgana's potion."

Before anyone could reply, Morgana suddenly begins coughing harshly and grasping at her throat as she collapses to the ground.

...

A/N: So sorry for the late update and the terrible cliffhanger. I hit a bit of a writers block and had to take time off from writing Mergana for a short while. But I'll try to update soon. I'll be posting The Art of Falling next! Thanks for reading and please leave your thoughts.

-McDiggin'It


	17. Chapter 17

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Seventeen:

...

Merlin runs to Morgana's side, grabbing her around the shoulders and pulling her into his chest. She stares up at him with wide eyes as she breathes heavily, her lungs working overtime to provide the oxygen she needs. Merlin's mind is frantic with panic as he looks at Gaius and then to Princess Ophelia. Tears spring to his eyes as he tries to think of something to do. He has nothing, knows nothing of the poison he'd unknowingly just given Morgana, and his heart feels as if it would explode with fear inside his chest. "Stay with me." He pleads to her. "Please, just—." He looks at Gaius again. "Gaius, a tonic!"

The elderly physician who had been immobilized with shock, snaps out of it and moves quickly to his workstation, pulling bottles of potions from his medicine chest. After several moments of frantic looking, he finds one that will induce vomiting, and turns to Merlin, throwing the small bottle to him.

Merlin catches it in his palm, unstoppers it with his teeth before placing it to Morgana's lips and tipping it up.

Morgana swallows down the bitter potion, her nose scrunching up in disgust. Her breathing is now completely labored, and her vision swims as the contents of the bottle combine with everything in her stomach. As expected, she immediately feels the contents of her stomach begin to make its way up through her esophagus, and finally out onto the floor beside Merlin. As soon as she's done, Morgana falls back against Merlin, and then goes completely still.

Merlin lays her back quickly and checks her pulse. It's weak, but it's there. He looks at Princess Ophelia as she crosses the room to where the rest of the poisonous plant lays. It takes her all of 2 minutes to figure out exactly what it is.

Her face is contorted in thought as she turns and goes to Morgana. "Gaius, how can you tell when someone is paralyzed?" She asks the Physician.

Gaius moves towards Morgana as well and checks her pulse, her breathing pattern, her pupils. He then takes a metal stick and runs it over Morgana's hand while watching her eyes. Despite not moving, her eyes begin to move frantically around. "Lady Morgana, can you hear me?"

She blinks, and a tear cascades down her cheek.

"Why isn't she saying anything?" Merlin asks worriedly.

"Because she's been paralyzed." Princess Ophelia replies somberly.

Gaius sits back and looks at her. "How did you know she would be paralyzed?"

Princess Ophelia looks down at Morgana and her face is a picture of worry. "I was hoping I would be wrong, but... the plant is called Curare. It renders whoever consumes it paralyzed... and then... it kills them." She shakes her head apologetically at Merlin. "To my knowledge, it's only been found in Ergyng."

Merlin's eyes are already wide in horror. The guilt and sorrow in his heart beginning to eat quickly through him like acid through metal. "Please tell me there's a cure."

Princess Ophelia closes her eyes and shakes her head. "Not that I know of."

Merlin's heart sinks low in his chest as he looks at Morgana again. Everything he'd just done, all his promise to find a cure for her, and all he'd done was doubt her and then poison her. Tears spring to his eyes again as he pulls her closer and buries his face into her hair, a small sob leaving his lips. "I'm sorry." He whispers sorrowfully. "I'm so sorry."

"You can't give up now, Merlin." Gaius says loudly.

Merlin sniffles as he pulls away and looks at Gaius. "I'm not giving up." He says sternly. His eyes trail back to Morgana and he looks her right in her eyes. "I'm never giving up. Not on you." He lays her back onto the cot and looks at Gaius. "I'm going to find Nimueh." He says with an air of confidence he hadn't possessed before. "I'm going to find her, I'm going to get the cure from her, and then I'm going to end her." He kisses Morgana's forehead and gets up. "For good." He tells her softly, then looks at Princess Ophelia in question. "How much time does she have?"

She shakes her head, "The vomiting tonic may have helped to remove some of what would've caused the poison to speed up, but it's fast acting... its hard to say, but I'd say you have 2, maybe 3 hours at the most."

Merlin nods at that, his face a picture of determination. "Then I must hurry. The sooner I find her, the sooner we can end all of this."

Gaius blinks confusedly at his ward, before his eyes begin to widen in realization. "Merlin, she's more than likely on her way here as we speak. What will you do _then_?"

Merlin shakes his head at Gaius. "I have to stop her."

"With what? Your magic?" Gaius asks incredulously. "Uther will have you executed!"

Merlin glares at Gaius. "I can't just let her kill everyone!"

"Run." Princess Ophelia chimes in.

"What?" Merlin asks confusedly.

Princess Ophelia nods at him. "When you've stopped her and gotten the cure, you have to run. Run far away from here."

Merlin bites his lip in thought. "I could do that."

Gaius stares at his ward and shakes his head. "No. You'll be an outlaw for the rest of your life!"

The young warlock sighs and shrugs his shoulders. "I don't have much of a choice, Gaius... if I don't do this, Morgana and a whole lot more people will die." He scrubs a hand down his face and looks at the only father figure he's ever had. He knows how much this worries and hurts him, but it has to be done. He's not going to just sit around and do nothing. "Besides," He adds as an afterthought, "... maybe being an outlaw could be fun."

Gaius glares. "That's not funny, Merlin."

Merlin sighs, "I know." He looks over to where Morgana lays, with her eyes staring up at the ceiling. He knows she can hear them. So he goes to her, kneeling down beside her once more and pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I'll be back with a cure." He promises, before getting up and leaving hurriedly.

Princess Ophelia worries her bottom lip between her teeth and looks at the Physician. "Nimueh is really powerful." She murmurs mindlessly. She fears for Merlin. He may be powerful, but she had not seen his magic. Nimueh's however, she'd witnessed with her own eyes. She could do things she didn't know was possible. And Ophelia fears that Merlin may not be able to stop her... especially now that she possesses the Stone of Mortem. And if he can't stop her, no one can... and all hell is going to break loose.

She heads towards the door, stopping only when Gaius asks where she's going. She turns to look at him and sighs, "If Nimueh is on her way here now, we'll need all the help we can get. I need to have a word with my father and explain what I've done here. His army could help." She looks over at Morgana's still figure and tears collect in her eyes.

"Princess, what you've done will sound like treason to a King, no matter what Kingdom he's from."

Princess Ophelia nods. "I know. If he wishes to disown and banish me after this, then so be it. But I'll be damned if I don't at least try to fix what I did." With that, the Princess hurries from Gaius' chambers and towards the one her father occupies.

...

The sun is now up in the sky, servants, Knights, and commoners are filing around in the castle without the slightest idea of what's about to happen.

Merlin knows exactly what to do. He'd formulated everything in his mind, knows what is to happen today, and is sure more than anything in the world of what he needs to do.

All his secrets, his carefulness with using magic, everything, can go to hell for all he cares. In his minds eye, the only thing he sees is Morgana. The only reason he has for giving up all his lies and secrets, is saving her. The only thing he cares about right now, is getting that cure, and destroying Nimueh.

"Merlin!"

The young warlock whirls around at the sound of Gwen's voice. He usually has a smile ready for whenever he sees her, but not today. The only thing that causes his determination to falter momentarily is the look on her face as she runs to him. "Gwen." He manages with furrowed brows. "Is everything alright—".

"The wedding. It's been moved up several hours, but the maids and guards haven't been able to find Lady Morgana."

Merlin's eyes threaten to roll to the back of his head. Morgana is dying, and these idiots are out here trying to marry her off to an impostor! Granted, they don't know of Morgana's current condition, but still. He grabs Gwen and pulls her off to a corner before conveying what he knows. Gwen's eyes grow as wide as saucers, and tears begin to form there as well.

"What do we do?" She asks worriedly.

Merlin immediately formulates a plan. "Find Arthur or any of the trusted Knights. Tell them what's happened, and then tell them to meet in the Great Hall as soon as possible. Can you do that?"

Gwen nods immediately. "Of course. And where will you be going?"

Merlin's jaw clenches as he looks down the corridor towards the Great Hall. "I'm going to seek an audience with the King."

Gwen frowns at that. "Why?"

Merlin offers her a half smile and squeezes her shoulder. "Because there's a war coming, and he ought to be ready for it." With that, he releases her and continues towards the Great Hall.

Gwen stares after him for a moment, then snaps out of it quickly and hurries the other way to find the Prince and his Knights.

Merlin pauses at the double doors when the guards refuse to let him pass. He steps back and closes his eye, then uses his magic to amplify onto himself, the faint conversation in the hall.

"...it's been an hour, King Uther. Does no one know where my bride-to-be is?"

"That is what we are trying to find out, Lord Borin. I assure you, we will find her. She's probably just having some last minute wedding jitters." Uther's voice carries. "Not to mention, the aforementioned time of the ceremony that was announced, was noon. As far as the Lady Morgana is concerned, she does not need to be here until then."

"This is outrageous." The impostor mutters under his breath. "First I'm kidnapped in the middle of the night, the Prince himself disappears, then I wake up in a corridor without my clothes, and my future wife is missing."

Merlin opens his eyes and takes note of the guards still staring bizarrely at him with their spears at his throat. A small smile graces his features as he clears his throat. "If you would both excuse me, I have to be in there." He goes to push the spears away from him, but the guards just end up pushing them closer to his neck.

The young warlock sighs to himself, then without a word, waves his hand and watches both guards abruptly smack against the wall behind them and crumple into an unconscious heap at his feet. He does not wait as he steps over them, and pushes the doors open with a flick of his wrist.

King Uther, his councilmen, several dozen guards, and the Lord Borin impostor himself all turn to to stare at him.

"What business do you have to interrupt this meeting, boy?" Uther snaps loudly at him.

Merlin ignores him as he moves to the center of the room to stand beside the fake Lord Borin. "We were going to wait until later to expose who this man really is," he says, gesturing towards the impostor, "... but I'm afraid we have more pressing matters on our hands, sire. It's now or never."

Uther's eyes are full of confusion and anger. "What in the world are you talking about?" He doesn't wait for an answer as he calls, "Guards! Seize this boy and throw him in the dungeons for his audacity to speak where he has no place!"

Merlin looks at the impostor beside him and sees the suspicious look on his face. To his left and right, guards are moving in, and Merlin takes a deep breath, bracing himself for finally showing the King of Camelot what he is and what he's capable of. "I think not, Sire." He cocks his head to the side, feels the magic in his veins begin to spread and fester in his bones until the most amazing feeling completely envelopes him. The feeling of true freedom. The freedom to use his magic with no restraints and no fear. When Arthur finds out, he'll most likely be angry at him for all the lies... but he will damn well understand if he wants any chance of surviving Nimueh when she arrives.

Power emanates from the young warlock, pushing the guards and everyone in the room away from him. The impostor ends up face first in the floor, the council members are tumbling out of their chairs, the guards are thrown against the walls, and Uther himself is slammed into his throne. Merlin let's go, and straightens his posture, waiting for the King's reaction.

"Sorcery." Uther murmurs with wide, fearful, but rage-filled eyes. "All these years, I gave you a job, took you in, cared for you, and you've been betraying Camelot this whole time!"

Merlin is taken aback, and he looks around for a moment in wonder. "I'm sorry, who are you talking to?" He asks rhetorically. "Because as I remember it, you didn't give a rats bloody dropping's about me! You only gave me the job of being Arthur's manservant because it would make you look noble for giving a lowly peasant a job after he saved your sons life. And if you want to talk about betrayal," he pauses and goes to the impostor, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, and yanking him up with surprising ease. Perhaps his freedom to use magic has given him an extra boost of strength. He grabs the impostors chin and forces him to look at the King. "Perhaps you should be looking at the very man you're trying to marry your own ward off to."

Uther snaps out of his throne, eyes wide with rage as he points at Merlin. "You dare to spread lies!"

Merlin was getting impatient. Nimueh is probably already at the gates and he's here, having an argument with a very dull and blinded King. "Have you seen him before?" He interrupts Uther's stammering's.

"What?" The King asks confusedly. "What does that have to do with—".

"This man has been lying to you from the start. He is not who he says he is, and he's actually stolen from you!"

"Lies!" The impostor bellows, then groans when Merlin slaps him in the face.

"Shut up, impostor." Merlin hisses. "You will speak when I tell you to." He turns back to Uther and pushes the impostor onto his knees with his magic. "If it is evidence you wish to see, then perhaps this," he pauses to tear off the arm of the impostors shirt. "...will suffice." He finishes, then points to the impostors shoulder.

"What— What is that?" Uther asks loudly.

Merlin pushes the impostor further and looks at Uther. "Sire, do you have the slightest idea why this man who claims to be a Lord of Mercia, has an insignia of Ergyng branded in his skin?"

King Uther's eyebrows furrow in curiosity as he takes several steps forward. "I don't..." He trails off as he tries to get a good look at the impostor's brand. His eyes widen into saucers, for it is in fact, Ergyng's insignia. "What is—". Before he could finish his question, the large double doors slam open again, revealing Prince Arthur, his Knights, Morgana's maid, and a man he'd never seen before.

Arthur and everyone stops abruptly at the sight of Merlin, standing over the impostor. The Prince blinks, staring incredulously at his manservant. "What's going on?"

Merlin pushes the impostor to the ground and gestures at him with his hand. "I was just beginning to explain to your father who this man really is."

Uther finally snaps out of his utter bewilderment and confusion and looks at his son. "Arthur, seize this man and this boy and throw them both in the dungeons! Your manservant is a sorcerer and should be executed immediately!"

Arthur blinks, confused as ever. "What?" He stares at his father as if he'd lost his mind. "Father, Merlin is not a—".

"He's telling you the truth." Merlin interrupts.

Arthur blinks rapidly, eyes glaring holes into Merlin's head. "Shut up, Merlin. You will speak when you are spoken to—".

"No, _you_ shut up, Arthur. I'm a sorcerer, and I can prove it."

"SEIZE HIM NOW!" Uther demands in a shriek.

Before anyone could move, Merlin waves his hand in the air, sending Uther back into his seat in a matter of milliseconds.

Arthur, along with everyone else, stare at Merlin with wide, unbelieving eyes. All but Gwaine, that is.

"I knew it!" The Knight exclaims with a laugh.

Arthur turns to glare at his Knight, getting the closed-lipped reaction he needed. He then turns to look at Merlin, a look of betrayal on his face. "You lied to me."

Merlin sighs slowly and stares at the Prince. "Technically, I didn't lie to you. You never asked nor assumed me to be a sorcerer."

Arthur glares, angry tears collecting in his eyes. "You were my friend!" He shrieks.

"And I still am!" Merlin bellows frustratedly.

Arthur's hand goes to the hilt of his sword, gripping it tightly. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't strike you where you stand."

Merlin looks down at the impostor, then back at Arthur. "Because thanks to this idiot, a powerful sorcerer by the name of Nimueh is on her way here as we speak. She's not here to celebrate a wedding that is not happening, so if you all want any chance at surviving her wrath, you'll have to stand _with_ me and not _against_ me."

Arthur blinks confusedly. "What are you talking about?"

Merlin points at the impostor. "The Stone Of Mortem that was stolen from King Uther's vault by this impostor, had been delivered to Nimueh." He looks at Uther, noticing the look of pure fear on his face. Arthur goes silent, his eyes widening and his mouth hanging open. He'd been counting on the impostor having hidden the stone somewhere in the castle, but it seems they're all too late.

Despite Uther's fear, the King angrily screams, "Lies!"

Arthur snaps out of his confused daze at that and looks at his father. "He's not lying, father."

Uther glares at his son. "What?!"

Arthur turns towards the man he'd brought with him. The one no one knew. "This, is the true Lord Borin of Mercia." He launches into an explanation of what had happened, before continuing to explain where he'd been the night before, traveling to Mercia in search of the real Lord Borin.

The man nods and glares at the man on the floor. " _I_ am Lord Borin, son of Lord Ferdinand, son of Sir Greyson III. And I have _never_ seen this man before in my life." He points to the impostor.

King Uther stares at the impostor before storming out of his throne and yanking the impostor up by the collar. "Who are you?!" He demands. The impostor only laughs.

The doors slam open a third time, and in walks Princess Ophelia, followed closely by her father and several guards of Ergyng. "I can tell you exactly who that is, Your Grace." Princess Ophelia says with confidence.

The impostor's eyes widen at her in shock.

"That's right, old friend." Princess Ophelia adds. "I've found out your secret."

"You know this man?" Uther asks confusedly.

King Athrwys steps forward, narrowing his eyes at the impostor. "This man once belonged in our ranks, King Uther. Until his father died, and he disappeared."

"His name is Cenred." Princess Ophelia confirms. "Once the son of an honorable man and advisor in my father's court... now a lying, traitorous coward."

King Uther looks flabbergasted by all this sudden news, but then Arthur's manservant manages to completely obliterate his mind with more.

"This impostor is not what's important right now, Sire." Merlin speaks loudly and clearly. "I believe he belongs in the dungeons where you can deal with him later. For now, we have much more important matters to discuss."

Uther glares. "You have no say in this court, boy! What could possibly be more important than this impostor stealing from my personal vault?! And don't think I forgot about your betrayal of the throne with your magic!"

Merlin resists the urge to roll his eyes. He decides to just jump into it. "As we speak, the Lady Morgana lays in the Physician's chambers, awaiting a cure for the poison in her body."

Uther freezes at that, his eyes growing as wide as saucers. "What?! By whom was she poisoned?!" He demands.

Merlin opens his mouth, then closes it. He sighs, closing his eyes before opening his mouth to tell the King that it was he who brought the poison to her, but someone else beats him to the punch.

"It is Nimueh, Your Grace." Princess Ophelia chimes in. "She sent a poison, and... I gave it to the Lady Morgana."

Merlin's eyes snap to the Princess's face, his eyes wide and confused. She offers a small apologetic smile. This was the least she could do for him after everything she'd done.

"WHAT?!" Uther exclaims, enraged. "I demand an explanation!"

Princess Ophelia nods in shame. "I was blinded by the promise she made to me. In return for Merlin, she would bring my mother back from the dead. It was a small price to pay until I met Merlin and realized that I wouldn't give him up for the world."

Merlin stares at Princess Ophelia, their eyes locking for several moments before she looks at the King of Camelot. "If you must be enraged, direct it towards me." She continues. She then points at Merlin and shakes her head. "This man has done nothing wrong. His only sin is loving a woman so fiercely, he was willing to give up his place, his life, and his freedom for her. Nimueh is on her way here right now, no doubt to murder us all. And if we continue to argue and glare at each other for differences we cannot control, we will all perish." Her look is pleading and hopeful.

King Athrwys steps up beside his daughter and takes her hand, smiling proudly at her. He turns his head, looking at the allied King of Camelot. "I have sent word, via falcon to my Kingdom, dispatching my army to march here as soon as the message is received." He pauses, watching Uther's reaction. "I will help you fight in whatever war the evil sorceress Nimueh may bring to your lands, but it will take at least two days for my forces to arrive. I know not what your quarrel is with Merlin, but according to my daughter, he is our only hope of survival right now."

Merlin watches silently, his eyes flickering between the two Kings. Uther looks both infuriated and contemplative, which he's not sure is a good thing.

Arthur then takes several steps forward and stands beside his manservant. He looks into Merlin's eyes, watching with slight confusion for something he's not entirely sure of. Power? Truth? Honesty? Loyalty? He sighs when Merlin gives him a sad but hopeful look. The look of trust. The Prince purses his lips a moment before reaching over and placing a firm hand on his friends shoulder. "I agree with King Athrwys, father." He turns his head towards the King. "I've know Merlin since the day he arrived in Camelot. Despite his astounding clumsiness, laziness, and idiocy, he's loyal, kind, caring, and strong." He looks back at the shining eyes of his manservant and offers a small smile. "I trust that if he is as powerful as Princess Ophelia says he is, he will lead us into victory against this evil sorceress."

Merlin beams, raising his own hand and placing on Arthur's shoulder. "Thank you, Arthur."

The Prince smiles and nods at him. "Don't mention it."

Uther continues to stare at the people before him, mind working at a thousand miles a minute. He then looks at Merlin and asks. "The Lady Morgana— how long does she have?"

Merlin shakes his head slowly. "No more than two hours, Sire."

Uther sighs worriedly and narrows his eyes at the manservant— sorcerer. "And you can get her that cure?"

Merlin nods confidently. "I swear it."

Uther looks at his guards, then at his Knights, his son, and at the small party from Ergyng. After several moments of silence, he nods to himself and looks at his guards again. "Take the impostor to the dungeons. Send word to our army to assemble immediately in the training grounds." He looks to his son and orders, "Arthur, you will assemble your Knights at the forefront. We're going to war." Guards begin to hurry about, leaving the Great Hall with Cenred the impostor while the King turns to the Ergyng King. "I trust your forces will be here as soon as two days?"

King Athrwys nods. "Without question."

Uther nods. "Then we must prepare for the arrival of Nimueh." He looks pointedly at Merlin and offers a tiny, almost unnoticeable nod. " _All_ of us."

...

A/N: And the war is officially on! Thanks for reading and reviewing, guys! I love and appreciate you all so much! I will try to update as soon as possible. For those reading _The Mad Prince_ , I will be updating that one next, so keep a lookout for it! Thank you all again, and don't forget to leave a review!

-McDiggin'It


	18. Chapter 18

Title: He is Mine

Chapter Eighteen:

Chaos unfolds within the castle walls as Merlin sprints back to Gaius' chambers. He's utterly exhausted, both physically and emotionally. He has done more running in the past few hours than he'd ever done a whole day. And yet, he feels like he could outrun a horse. The adrenaline pumping through his veins can only be from the facts that Morgana needs him, and Uther Pendragon, a man who despises magic, has just allowed him to keep his head for the time being until Nimueh is defeated and the cure for Morgana has been retrieved. He's got the weight of the world on his shoulders, but he was not going to slow down nor stop now.

He takes the stairs three at a time, his long legs moving as fast as they can to get him to his destination. He stops to catch his breath only when he's made it to the door, before he finally pushes it back and enters. He immediately looks to the spot where he'd last seen Morgana, finding her still there, immobile, and with her eyes closed. Panic rises quickly inside him, his heart clenching painfully as he looks towards the corner where Gaius is working. "Gaius!" he calls hoarsely as he runs to Morgana's side. He falls to his knees beside her cot, taking her cold, motionless hand in his.

"Merlin!" Gaius snaps at his ward with wide eyes, a hand flying to his chest. "You scared the everliving daylights out of me!"

Merlin is breathing heavily, throwing a terrified look at the Physician. "What happened?" he demands in a panicked tone.

Gaius looks confusedly from him, to Morgana and back before rolling his eyes. "She's fallen asleep, Merlin. You can only keep your eyes open for so long before they become tired."

Merlin stares at him, then looks at Morgana and finally notices the slight rise and fall of her chest. Sighing in relief, he falls back from his knees to sit on the floor, but his hand stays wrapped around hers. A thought suddenly hits him and he looks worriedly at the Physician. "Gaius, won't she—". He cuts himself off and looks at Morgana's pale, beautiful face. "Won't she fall into an endlessly long sleep of some sort?"

Gaius shakes his head immediately, slightly easing his ward's worries. "In the time since you left, I've been watching for the effects of the poison. There's only a slight chance that I may be wrong, but I'm fairly certain that this poison is solely affecting one part of the Lady Morgana's brain. The part which controls motor functions of the body, like movements and breathing. It has nothing to do with anything else."

Merlin nods slowly, trying to process everything. "So the effects of the poison paralyzes her, before slowly pulling away her breathing, and therefore…" he trails off, not wanting to even say the possibility of Morgana dying.

Gaius nods. "Yes… which is why you must hurry. I've been counting the seconds between every inhale and exhale, and the intervals seem to increase every half hour."

"By how much?" Merlin asks nervously.

Gaius sighs and shakes his head. "Started with a second and a half… it is now at two seconds and a half."

Merlin inhales sharply and looks at Morgana again, tears prickling in his eyes. He leans over her, pressing his lips to her cheek and keeping them there for as long as he can.

"Merlin." Gaius interrupts him.

The young warlock looks at the Physician wearily.

"Does Uther know now?"

Merlin knows he's referring to his magic, and he nods.

"And Arthur?"

Merlin nods again, before slowly pulling away from Morgana and standing up. "Arthur is somewhat understanding, probably because of the pressure of being attacked by an evil sorceress. And Uther more or less allowed me to find a cure for Morgana. Should I fail, he'll probably have me beheaded, and I'm completely fine with that. But should I succeed…" he trails off and shrugs. "I don't know what he means to do with me when all of this is over."

Gaius sighs as he stares at the young ward. He remembers when he first came to Camelot. He was so much younger, so much more childish and careless. Now he's grown into a smart, brave, and compassionate young warlock. He's proud of him, of that he's sure. He takes several steps forward and pulls him into an embrace.

Merlin immediately hugs him back, sighing tiredly as tears of sadness and fear falls down his face. "What if I fail, Gaius?… What if I fail and she—,".

"You won't." Gaius cuts him off sternly. "You're a lot of things, Merlin." he pulls away and looks at the young man before him. "A lazy prat among other things," he jokes, earning him a small laugh from his ward. He then shakes his head seriously and looks him in the eye. "But you're never a failure. Never was, never will be."

Merlin smiles at that, suddenly having this newfound hope and strength from Gaius' words. Before he could thank the Physician, the sound of a horn, followed by the sound of explosion- accompanied with the rumble and quake of the castle walls, breaks up their short conversation. Merlin looks out the window, seeing smoke rising up from somewhere in the City.

"She's here." Gaius says gravely.

Merlin looks down at Morgana and walks over to her, leaning down to whisper into her ear. He doesn't know if she can hear him, but he wants to assure her. "I'll be back soon with a cure. I promise."

…

There's an odd presence in Camelot, and Merlin could feel it. It's heavy, and it's pressing down on him as he hurries down the stairs. Dark magic. That's the only explanation for why his magic suddenly feels like it's fading slowly inside him. The explanation for why it feels like there's an enormous, invisible hand, reaching down from the ceilings, trying to catch him and crush him under its weight. He runs faster, his breath coming in shallow gasps as he turns out the first door, and bursts out of the castle. He can see Knights, civilians, and guards, running about, screaming in terror, but he sees no enemies.

He stops abruptly, his eyes darting from left to right, looking for the enemy, but… nothing. A Knight is running past him when he yanks him by the arm and shouts, "What's going on?"

The Knight's eyes are wide and fearful as he opens his mouth to reply, but he never gets to say anything, for in the next moment, he's suddenly catapulted out of Merlin's grip and against the wall. Merlin's eyes widen as he whirls around at the feeling of something invisible whizzing past his head. On instinct alone, he ducks, and then there's a hissing sound from behind him. The warlock turns towards it, and sees blood on the wall, but no host.

It takes him all of three seconds to figure it out. "They're invisible." he mutters under his breath. He turns again, facing downhill towards the City, seeing people get attacked by countless invisible creatures. There's a faint sound of flapping wings coming from his right, and he ducks in time to feel a draft of wind against the side of his face. He gives it no thought as he waves his hand towards the sound, and then hears it smashing into a wall, followed by the splatter of blood.

Approaching the blood splattered wall, he reaches a foot forward, searching for the creature. He feels it against the front of his boot after several swipes of his foot. Crouching down, Merlin whispers an uncloaking spell, but nothing happens. He whispers the only other one he knows, and still, nothing. Sighing in frustration, he looks around the grounds for something that could help. No one can see what's attacking them and no one even _knows_ what's attacking them.

He gets up, taking off in a run down the hill towards the city, and that's when he sees it. The splatter of blood, floating in midair, inches away from a young child's head. He raises his hand, waving his hand towards the hovering splatter, and watching as it gets thrown towards the ground with a pained screech.

"Merlin!"

The young warlock whirls around, nearly falling over in the process as he searches for the owner of the voice. For some reason, it makes him dizzy as well, and he stumbles. Shaking his head, Merlin looks out in the direction where the voice came from to see a Knight, standing in front of about a dozen small children, blindly waving his sword in the air. Merlin shakes his head again, trying to focus. "Gwaine!"

He runs towards him, waving his hand in the air in the general direction of where Gwaine is standing. Screeches could be heard as he comes to a stop in front of the Knight, panting heavily.

Gwaine coughs wildly and swallows a lungful of air as he shakes his head at Merlin. "We're losing. It's one thing to fight magical creatures, and a whole 'nother thing to fight _invisible_ magical creatures."

Merlin nods. "I know. But I have an idea."

Gwaine's face slowly contorts into a small grin as he nods at Merlin. "What've you got in mind?"

"We need oil. Lots of it. All of it even."

Gwaine blinks confusedly. "That's it?"

"And bows and arrows. Every adult should be given one."

Gwaine nods immediately and turns to hurry and find help in retrieving what Merlin has requested.

…

Gwaine, armed with a bow and a leather quiver of arrows, followed by the Knights and citizens of Camelot, run through the streets with pails and pails of oil.

Merlin is busy throwing spells aimlessly in the air when Gwaine finally calls that they've gotten enough oil.

"What now?" Gwaine asks urgently.

Merlin runs to the large barrels of oil and stands over them, nodding to the Knights. "You might want to stand back."

Gwaine does as he's told, watching the warlock close his eyes and place his hands over the open barrel. Words the Knight couldn't understand begin to spill out of the manservant's mouth as his eyes snap open and his pupils glow golden. It is both fascinating and terrifying at the same time. Suddenly, and without warning, all of the barrels begin to quake, and all the oil filters out at once.

Merlin raises his eyes to the sky, raising his hands into the air and pulling them apart to the sides as he finishes the incantation. The oil spreads across the air as if it is being spilled on a solid surface, before he pushes it up higher into the skies. Releasing the spell, Merlin grins as some of the oil falls immediately back to the ground, leaving only large, winged-creature shaped blobs of oil, flying over them.

Gwaine laughs in triumph as he takes his bow, notches an arrow in it, and pulls the it back.

"Wait." Merlin stops him and raises a hand towards the tip of Gwaine's readied arrow. " _Forbearne_." He says aloud.

Gwaine gasps when the arrowhead immediately catches fire. "Neat!" He smiles, aims at a flying blob of oil, and fires. The arrow whistles through the air, striking the creature, and immediately sending it up into flames.

Camelot's citizens cheer loudly as they all hurry towards the warlock. Merlin turns, finding a stack of firewood, lined up against a brick wall. He mutters the spell to command fire again while waving his hand towards the firewood. All of it catches fire, and people begin filing towards it to light their arrows.

Merlin releases a sigh of relief as burning arrows begin sailing into the air, and screeching blobs of fire begin falling to the ground.

Gwaine claps him on the back and nods at him. "You've saved us today, Merlin."

Merlin shakes his head at the Knight. "We haven't won yet."

Gwaine nods. "I suppose you have an evil sorceress to destroy?"

"Yes." Merlin replies bitterly. "Have you seen Arthur?"

"In the castle with Gwen." Gwaine answers. "Last I saw them, they were rallying up a few guards to help protect the King."

Merlin leaves the Knight in charge of the fight, sprinting back to the castle as fast as he can, despite the fact that his dizziness has not dissipated.

He weaves through panicked guards, realizing that some more of the invisible creatures have already made their way into the castle. He keeps running as he waves his hands towards any curtains, draperies, and such, sending them over the invisible creatures. Guards begin charging towards the floating fabrics, cutting, stabbing, and slicing through them.

He can feel the adrenaline leaving his body. He can feel his limbs tiring. He can feel his powers weakening. Something isn't quite right.

Just as the young warlock reaches the doors to the great hall, a loud, ear piercing roar tears through the castle, threatening to split his skull open as he falls to his knees and covers his ears.

His vision blurs as he looks out the windows and up into the skies. "Kilgharrah." He whispers. Forcing himself up off the ground, Merlin stumbles towards the window and looks up just in time to see the old dragon swoop down over the castle. Kilgharrah opens its large snout, roaring loudly once more, before sending a scorching blaze of fire over the castle.

Merlin's breath catches in his throat as his eyes grow wide with shock. The West tower is completely in flames. "KILGHARRAH, NOOO!"

The dragon rears back, turning its head abruptly towards Merlin.

As soon as the young warlock made eye contact, he knew this was not his old friend. At least not anymore. In the stead of huge, golden eyes, are red, hungry, and utterly enraged pupils.

Merlin gasps, his heart sinking. "No." He manages, just before the dragon rears back and lets out a roar in his direction. It begins crawling across the castle rooftops towards him, and Merlin stumbles back and turns.

Blasting the doors to the great hall off it's hinges, the warlock sprints through it, just as Kilgharrah comes crashing down over the corridor, directly on top of the spot he'd just been standing in.

Merlin dives behind a pillar, just as the dragon sends a string of fire towards him. His tunic catches fire immediately, but a spell commanding water is already leaving his lips and dousing himself in cold water. The warlock gasps, jolting up into a standing position as he runs across the Great Hall and turns to face the dragon.

Kilgharrah looks almost unrecognizable as it stares him down. Merlin raises his arms in a gesture of surrender.

"Kilgharrah." He calls, his eyes meeting the great dragons large, red ones. "What has she done to you?" He asks despairingly.

The dragon's nostrils flare, smoke huffing out of them as he begins approaching the young warlock. "Oh Merlin," he says with an air of sass that Merlin doesn't recognize. "Poor, clueless, naive Merlin. Your dragon is no longer here."

Merlin's eyes widen in realization. "Nimueh." The dragon smiles widely, and Merlin takes several steps back. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" The dragon asks, it's tone, mocking. "Wreaking havoc on the Kingdom of the man who murdered my kin? _Our_ kin?" Its tone changes quickly from innocent to enraged. "How can you live among these spineless, powerless people? How can you serve the son of the King who hates and murders anything with magic?!"

Merlin stares at the dragon, backing away to the side. "You wouldn't understand." He's extremely aware of the fact that once Nimueh has said what she wants to say, she is going to destroy him and everything in her way to get to Uther. He has to stall her while at the same time, try to find a way to get the cure for Morgana and a way to destroy her without permanently killing Kilgharrah.

The dragon laughs, " _You're_ the one who doesn't understand, Merlin. _You're_ the one who is too blind and too stupid, too driven by your emotions and your pathetic little heart to see what's going on around you. You're too _weak_ to fight the evil around you!"

"The evil around me?!" Merlin shouts incredulously. " _You're_ the one who's here to seek out your petty revenge! _You're_ the one who sent enchanted creatures to attack a city of innocent men, women, and children! _You_ are the evil around me!"

Nimueh laughs in Kilgharrah's voice, and it sounds so utterly wrong. "Oh please. So it's okay for Uther to murder innocent people who possess magic, but it's not okay for me to do the same to his kind?"

"I'm not saying he was right!" Merlin snaps angrily. "But this isn't the way to solve whatever issues you have with Uther. Killing more people will not bring back the ones you lost."

"You're right." Nimueh replies, narrowing Kilgharrah's eyes towards him. "It won't bring them back, but it will certainly make me feel better."

Merlin glares. He's losing time, and it looks like he won't be getting anywhere with Nimueh/Kilgharrah. It's so odd to be speaking to an evil sorceress through Kilgharrah. Which is why he asks, "What did you do to Kilgharrah?"

The sorceress grins maliciously, shaking Kilgharrah's head. "I'm sure you're familiar with the Stone Of Mortem?"

Merlin glares furiously. The Stone Of Mortem. Of course that's how!

Nimueh catches the livid look in his eyes and laughs. "Oh, so you _do_ know."

Merlin's jaw clenches tightly. He has no time for her games. "What did you do to Kilgharrah?" He repeats maliciously.

"Oh Merlin," the dragon huffs in Nimueh's mocking tone. "Your dear old friend is no longer here. You see, now that I have the stone of Mortem, I can control him, as well as replace him in his own physical being."

Merlin stares. He has no idea what that means for Kilgharrah. _Is he gone forever? And how could he possibly stop Nimueh now that she's got her hands on something that could control a millennium old dragon?!_ Merlin glares. He's really running out of time. "What do you want, Nimueh?"

"What do I want?" The dragon asks in a fiery roar. "I want to see Uther Pendragon grovel on his knees, pleading for his life the way my kin pleaded for theirs before he murdered them all. I want to see everyone he ever cared for, die a slow and painful death. I want his Kingdom and everything he worked hard to build go up in flames. And finally, I want to watch the life leave his cold, heartless eyes as I crush his pathetic little skull."

Merlin is utterly exasperated. That is a lot of things. First of all, he cannot let any of that happen. Morgana and Arthur are included in the list of people Uther cares for. Second, he has to get that cure soon. Third, he has to find a way to return Kilgharrah back to his body. Fourth, he has to find a way to rid Nimueh of the Stone Of Mortem. And finally, he has to destroy her for good. That, is a _lot_ of things to do. But like Gaius had assured him, he's anything but a failure, and he will not fail. Not today, not ever.

So he thinks as he asks question after question, stalling the evil sorceress in Kilgharrah's body. His only advantage, is that Nimueh thinks she's got all the time in the world. He has to bide his time and make sure she doesn't leave the hall.

It takes about three minutes, but it finally comes to him. In order to beat Nimueh at her own game, he has to think like her.

Seeking the deepest corners of his mind for all the lessons Gaius taught him and the magical books he's read, Merlin searches for every bit of knowledge he has on the Stone Of Mortem.

The Stone Of Mortem's origins, purpose, use, etc. Finally, as Nimueh begins to move towards him, he remembers something in a book he'd read last year.

 _The Stone Of Mortem contains a piece of the soul of every being who uses it. When activated, it needs a host. The owner of the body that the stone uses must then find another host to reside in as the Stone gathers enough power for the original body to strengthen, in order to host both the owner, and every soul before it._

 _To cut off the connection between the stone and the owner of the host, the body must be burnt and the heart ripped out..._

Merlin's eyes light up as he looks at the dragon with a newfound hope. He has yet to see Nimueh's actual body anywhere, which means she's hiding it somewhere for the time being, buying herself time to grow in power. That is, if he doesn't find her first. "Say..." He says with a growing smirk. "Where is your body, Nimueh?"

It's almost unnoticeable on Kilgharrah's features, but it's evident in her eyes that she knows that Merlin is on to something.

...

A/N: Late update, I know. But better late than never, right? I'm sorry if my fics seem all over the place and confusing and whatever else is wrong with them. My life has been so out of whack lately, and I'm just having trouble trying to juggle everything all at once. I'm exhausted, but I'm trying my best. Anyways, let me know what you guys think of this chapter! I think this whole fic is just getting out of hand and pathetically unorganized, so I apologize for that. But thank you anyway for reading and reviewing.

-McDiggin'It


	19. Chapter 19

Title: He Is Mine

...

Chapter Nineteen:

...

He can tell by the look on Kilgharrah's face that Nimueh has caught on to what he knows. Merlin grins for good measure.

"That's right, Nimueh. I've figured it out." He slowly sidesteps.

The dragon sneers. "Took you long enough... but it won't make a difference. You'll never find my body. And you'll never find the cure for your lover." She laughs in Kilgharrah's rumbling voice.

Merlin's jaw clenches. "Oh don't worry, Nimueh. You do what you have to do, and I'll do the same." Merlin raises his hands, sending a blast of magic towards the dragon. It cries out as Merlin's magic pushes it against the wall. He's ready when it's snout widens and sends a string of fire towards him. He shields himself with his magic, but the force was not anticipated, sending him flying to the back of Uther's throne.

He hits the ground hard, rolling several times before he finally comes to a stop. He inhales the lungful of air that had been knocked out of him just moments ago as he quickly gets back onto his feet.

"You're only delaying the inevitable, Merlin!" Nimueh screeches from the other side of the hall. "Why don't you save us both the time, and let me make your death quick."

Merlin rolls his eyes as he peeks over the throne. "You'll have to catch me first." With those words, he makes for the side exit, sprinting down the corridor to his right. The dragon's screeches could be heard, coupled with the rumbling of the castle walls.

He runs down the corridor, jumping over piles of debris and takes the first door he sees. To his surprise, he finds Arthur there, pointing a sword at him while Gwen and Uther stand back with wide, fearful eyes.

"Merlin." Arthur sighs in relief as he lowers his sword. "I thought—".

"No time for chit chat, Arthur." Merlin interrupts. "Nimueh has possessed the body of a dragon and is on her way here to find the King."

Arthur is at a loss for words as he stares at his manservant. He shakes his head and glances at his father. He looks back to his manservant and asks, "A dragon?"

Merlin nods. "Yes. It is absolutely vital that you keep the King safe and faraway from her for as long as possible."

Arthur nods immediately, in the midst of doing exactly that, but he sees Merlin moving towards the door again. "Where are you going?"

Merlin stops and looks at the Prince. "I must find Nimueh's body. The sooner I do that, the sooner I can get the cure for Morgana, as well as put an end to Nimueh herself."

"You can't." Gwen chimes in with a concerned expression. "What if she catches you?"

Merlin smiles at his dear friend. "I won't let that happen."

Arthur steps forward then. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Merlin thinks for a moment, trying to sort out what he is to do and what can be done to help him retrieve the cure for Morgana faster. After several moments, it comes to him. His face brightens as he nods. "The party from Ergyng. Where are they?"

"King Athrwys has taken some of his men to the back of the castle. They'll be defending the South while they await their forces."

Merlin nods. "And Princess Ophelia?"

Arthur shakes his head. "Last I've seen her, she was headed for Gaius' chambers to help with Morgana."

Merlin ponders a moment. He knows that the Princess is the only one who might have an idea of where Nimueh has hidden her body. She's the only one who has had constant contact with Nimueh. If anyone can help him, it's her. "Find Princess Ophelia. Have her meet me at the top of the East tower as soon as possible."

Arthur looks confused, but he does not question Merlin. Right now, it seems that the fate of Morgana and all of Camelot lies in his hands. The Prince momentarily shakes his head in disbelief as Merlin walks away. "Merlin." He waits for the manservant to look at him, and he nods. "Be careful."

Merlin smiles widely as he nods his head. "You too, Sire." He replies and disappears out the door. Arthur, Gwen, and Uther follow quickly behind him, heading in the other direction. They'll need to move quickly and quietly.

...

Merlin heads straight towards the East. His Dragonlord powers won't work on Nimueh. She's not a dragon, and Kilgharrah's not there in his own body. But he knows that he's somewhere, and wherever he is, he'll hear his call. He just needs to find an open space void of distractions. He takes the stairs two at a time, trying to get to the East tower.

When he reaches the top, he takes a moment to catch his breath before calling out into the skies. " _O drakon, fthengomai au se kalon su katerkheo deuro_!" He waits a moment, his eyes closed and his mind focused on finding Kilgharrah. "Come on, Kilgharrah." Merlin mutters under his breath. "I know you hear me. You always do."

"Merlin."

Merlin eyes snap open as he whirls around, his heart jumping in his chest at the familiar, rumbling sound of the Great Dragon's voice. "Kilgharrah!" He finds nothing behind him but the distant setting of the sun.

"I can hear you, young warlock." Kilgharrah speaks telepathically to him. "But I'm afraid I cannot come to you."

Merlin shakes his head and swallows. "You don't have to. Just tell me where you are."

"I cannot."

Merlin blinks rapidly. "Why not?"

"I am no longer in possession of my body."

"I know, I've seen Nimueh. She's using your powers, your strength, to destroy Camelot."

"I fear," Kilgharrah says cryptically. "... my time has come."

Merlin frowns. "What?"

"The Stone Of Mortem is stronger than any ancient, magical artifact you'll ever see. I cannot defeat it. Nimueh has been planning this from the start, and... I can do nothing against her."

This is the first time Merlin is hearing such words from Kilgharrah. Such hopelessness. But he has to believe that there's hope! "You're wrong!" Merlin argues. "She _can_ be defeated. She _will_ be. I just need you to help me find where she has hidden her body. If I find her body, I can destroy her and save Morgana."

"Morgana?" Kilgharrah asks curiously.

Merlin nods, despite knowing Kilgharrah can't see him. "Yes. She was poisoned, remember?"

"I do not, young warlock. The last time you summoned me was several weeks ago."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "Weeks?" Merlin blinks rapidly. Weeks? "Kilgharrah, I saw you a few hours ago."

"I began slowly losing control of my body a week ago." Kilgharrah replies bluntly.

Merlin's mind races. "She was already in control of you then... but how? She only had the Stone for a few hours!"

"Merlin, Nimueh is a High Priestess of the Old Religion. Did you really think she planned this alone? I suppose she had the help of someone just as powerful as herself. Together, they started a ritual that slowly, but surely took my control of my body away. And when the time came for them to possess the Stone, they were finally able to remove me completely."

Merlin paces as he thinks long and hard. That would all explain Kilgharrah's behavior, and whoever was in the Crystal Cave. "Another High Priestess. But who?"

Kilgharrah sighs tiredly. "I grow weaker by the hour. I cannot hold the telepathic connection for much longer."

Merlin panics as he asks, "You have to help me find you. Where are you?"

Kilgharrah is silent for a few moments. Just when Merlin thinks he's lost the connection, he finally continues. "I do not know where I am. All I see is darkness. All I hear, is the slow, endless flow of water."

Merlin perks up at that. "Water?"

"Yes, young warlock."

Hope spreads further in Merlin's chest. "Does it sound like a stream? A river? Perhaps a faucet?"

Kilgharrah pauses, using his senses to gather the sound around him. "I am unsure. Its... distorted somehow."

"Distorted." Merlin repeats as his mind races. If Kilgharrah is not in a body, then he must be trapped in the stone. And wherever the Stone is, Nimueh's body should be. "Kilgharrah, I need—". Merlin cuts himself off, for he actually feels the connection between them disappear.

"Merlin."

The young warlock turns to find Princess Ophelia. "Princess. How is Morgana?"

The Princess's face falls for a moment. "She's getting weaker. We have to find that cure soon."

Merlin nods. "I know. And I need your help doing that."

The Princess squares her shoulders back. "How can I help?"

"I have to find Nimueh's body, but I don't know where she's hiding it. It could be anywhere, and I don't know her enough to know where she would hide something valuable to her. Do you have an idea of where that would be for her?"

Princess Ophelia thinks long and hard. She paces as she tries to think of all the past conversations she had with the evil sorceress. Nothing really comes to mind, except... "Did you know that Nimueh was born in Camelot?"

Merlin blinks. "No. I don't know much about her life. I just know that she was not a very good person."

Princess Ophelia nods. "Camelot is all she knew before King Uther had her purged from this world."

"What are you saying?" Merlin asks.

"I'm saying that Nimueh's body is either hidden somewhere here in Camelot where she was born," she gives Merlin a pointed look. "... but that's highly unlikely, or she has her body hidden somewhere she knows no one would think to look."

Merlin sighs frustratedly and runs his fingers through his hair. "That could be anywhere."

Princess Ophelia shakes her head at Merlin. "Not necessarily." She says softly. At Merlin's questioning look, she continues. "Her body. Wherever she was taken after her death in the Great purge, must've been hell to her. What better place to hide something valuable to you, than a place where everyone else would think you wouldn't."

Merlin's eyes widen as realization hits him. "King Uther is probably the only person who knows where her body was taken after the Great Purge."

Princess Ophelia nods in agreement. "More reason for Nimueh to kill him. He would know where her body is."

"We can't let her find him." Merlin says sternly.

"Then _we_ must find him first."

...

One hour. That is about all Merlin has left to find the cure for Morgana and have it administered to her before it's too late. He's sprinting, panting, jumping, weaving, and bobbing over, under, and side to side, avoiding broken glass, debris and rubble from destroyed walls, pillars, doors, and ceilings. Princess Ophelia is keeping up well enough, several feet behind him. Had it been any other time, he would've minded his manners and stayed beside or behind her. But time is not something he can afford at the moment, and he needs to get to Uther as soon as possible.

Last he remembers, Arthur was heading down the corridor towards Gaius' chambers, so that is the direction he goes.

It doesn't take him long to find Arthur, which he's extremely thankful for. The only problem is, Uther is not with him.

"Where's the King?" Merlin asks incredulously.

Arthur startles, turning to look at him. He shakes his head rapidly. "I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?!" Merlin shrieks in a near panic. "You had one job!"

"We got separated!" Arthur bellows. "We were running down the corridor when the dragon found us and knocked me halfway across the bloody castle with its tail!"

"Stop screaming!" Princess Ophelia snaps at the both of them. "We're on the same team, remember?"

Merlin and Arthur both calm down some almost immediately. Merlin huffs and runs his hand through his hair. "So Gwen was left with the King?"

Arthur nods. "I reckon they made it to Gaius' chambers safely since Princess Ophelia found you?"

Princess Ophelia furrows her eyebrows at the Prince. "It was Sir Gwaine who came to deliver Merlin's message to meet him in the East tower."

Arthur's eyes widen comically. "Then where are Gwen and my father?"

Merlin growls in frustration and shakes his head. "Nevermind! Right now, we need to get moving. Standing here comparing notes and stories isn't going to help us." He leads the way down the corridor.

Using his magic, he blasts doors off their hinges, taking only several moments to look inside before continuing onto the next. He can hear people screaming from a distance, can feel the castle rumble and quake as Nimueh wreaks havoc on the main towers of the castle. This was going to be a pain in the arse to clean when it's over. At the end of the corridor, he only skids to a halt when a thought crosses his mind.

He turns and looks at Princess Ophelia. "Gaius was a part of the Great Purge."

Princess Ophelia and Prince Arthur both stare confusedly at him.

Merlin continues urgently, "There's a huge chance that he knows where Nimueh's body was taken."

The Princess' eyes light up for a mere moment before they widen as if in realization. "Then we've got another problem on our hands."

Merlin quickly catches on to the same realization while Arthur continues to look confused. Merlin groans. "Nimueh will be looking for him too." The young warlock runs to the closest window, eyes darting left, right, down and up in search of the dragon. His heart jumps up into his throat when he sees Nimueh, currently in Kilgharrah's body, slamming her large, scaled tail into the tower containing Gaius' chambers. The tower practically explodes, spraying debris in every direction.

The next thing Merlin sees, is Nimueh sending balls of flame into the tower, setting everything that's left, ablaze.

...

A/N: I'm so sorry for another late update. I have no excuse. I'm just a horrible person. But I hope you guys like this chapter! I'll try to update ASAP! Thank you so very much for reading, and please leave a review!

-McDiggin'It


	20. Chapter 20

Title: He is Mine

...

Chapter Twenty:

...

 _The next thing Merlin sees is Nimueh sending balls of flame into the tower, setting everything that's left ablaze._

"NOOOO!" Merlin's voice carries across the castle, and Nimueh actually turns her head towards him, contorting Kilgharrah's snout into a devilish grin. Merlin glares, his body shaking with fury and worry, his jaw clenched tightly, and his body humming with power. The dizziness he'd felt earlier is now completely replaced with pure adrenaline and rage. He lifts his leg onto the window sill, ready to send a blast of his fury against the dragon when he feels a hand wrap around his forearm.

"Merlin!" Arthur drags the manservant back in and shakes his shoulders. "Now is not the time for revenge." He snaps. "Take Princess Ophelia, and find Gaius and Morgana. I'll find Gwen and my father, and we'll meet back at the front entrance!"

Merlin doesn't really process what the Prince says, but Princess Ophelia is already dragging him up a flight of stairs. They take the steps two at at time, Merlin's chest heaving with gasps as the worry in his heart begins to grow. He stumbles, catching himself at the last moment before continuing.

He doesn't even know that tears are forming in his eyes until he feels them run down his cheeks. He stops, suddenly feeling like he's about to hurl, and he doubles over to dry heave a couple of times.

"Merlin." Princess Ophelia helps him upright and grabs his face in her hands. "Look at me."

Merlin's vision clears as he looks at her. "What if— what if they were still in the tower?"

Princess Ophelia shakes her head rapidly at him. "No. You mustn't think like that—".

"But what if they were? Gaius had no way of knowing that Nimueh is in the dragon's body!"

"Gaius is a very intelligent man. He would've known that staying in one place during a battle is unwise."

Merlin can't help it. It does not ease the worry inside him. He shakes his sweaty head and whispers, "I don't know what I'll do if... if—".

"Do you love her?" Ophelia cuts him off.

Merlin blinks confusedly for a moment. "What?" He asks.

Princess Ophelia gives him a sad, knowing look. "I offered you my Kingdom, and you turned it down. No man in their right mind would do that, warlock or not." She lets go of his face to look away, swiping quickly at the tears forming in her eyes. It's painful to admit, but she can't deny the truth. She turns her head back to look at him, and the pain in his eyes hurts her. "Only love could've made you do that, Merlin." She smiles grievously at him. "I know because— because I gave up the chance to see my mother again for love."

Merlin stares dolefully at the Princess. This isn't exactly making him feel better, but he gets what she's trying to say. She loves him. The young warlock shakes his head slowly. "Princess, I— I'm so sorry."

Ophelia shakes her head and smiles. "No, do not apologize for feeling the way you do. I understand now that love is more powerful than any magic in this world. Which is why you would know if Morgana were gone."

Merlin sighs softly, feeling like a whole weight he hadn't realized had been placed there, was being lifted off his shoulders. He nods, offering a confident smile. "You're right... thank you."

Princess Ophelia smiles back and inhaled deeply. "You're welcome." She looks over her shoulder at the rest of the steps leading up to the next floor. "Now," She turns to look seriously at him. "Let's go find that cure and save Morgana."

The trek up to the tower where Gaius' chambers once was, is agonizingly long. Merlin's heart is in his throat as they stop just a few feet away from all the rubble that's left. He peeks out of the gaping hole in the wall, eyes searching for the dragon. He sees nothing but the remains of the tower, strewn across the roofing of the levels below. Just on the other side of the missing tower is the rest of the staircase leading up to Morgana's chambers. He turns, nodding at the Princess. "It's clear."

They shimmy their way across what's left of the floor and onto the staircase, before continuing up to the next level of the castle. For the remainder of the way, they're not interrupted, which Merlin is extremely grateful for. He's running short on time.

As soon as they make it to Morgana's chambers, the young warlock stops for a moment, sending up a silent prayer to whatever holy being is out there, that Morgana is safe. Taking a deep breath, he finally pushes the door open and enters.

The first thing he sees is a heap of clothing on the floor by the foot of Morgana's bed. The next, is another heap by Princess Ophelia's bed. Merlin furrows his eyebrows as he moves further into the chambers and calls out. "Gaius?" A muffled cough can be heard, coming from somewhere in the corner by Morgana's dresser, and Merlin hurries towards it. "Gaius?" He calls again.

The dresser suddenly slams open and the elderly Physician stumbles out. "Merlin!"

Merlin breathes a loud sigh as he hurries forward and hugs the Physician. "Where's Morgana?" He asks worriedly as he pulls away.

Gaius turns and pulls away a window curtain on the ground, revealing Morgana, still unconscious on the floor. Merlin doesn't say a word as he falls to his knees beside her and feels the side of her neck for a pulse. As soon as he feels the faint pulse against his fingers, the fist around his heart loosens. He looks up at Gaius and sighs. "Thank you, Gaius."

The Physician waves a hand dismissively at him. "Have you got the cure?"

Merlin shakes his head as he picks up Morgana's body and carries her to the bed. "No." He replies as he places her on top of the luxurious mattress before pulling the sheets over her shoulders. "But I think I know how to get it." He finally turns and looks pointedly at Gaius.

"How?"

Merlin recaps the events of the past two hours to Gaius while unthinkingly caressing the back of Morgana's hand.

Princess Ophelia chimes in. "The Great Purge. After it happened, King Uther had all the remains of everything magical moved and discarded somewhere."

Merlin nods. "Do you know where that is?"

Gaius frowns. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Merlin huffs. "We think Nimueh has hidden her body where she'd been discarded by Uther after the Great Purge."

Gaius nods slowly as he rubs his chin. "Because all her magical kin laid there as well."

Merlin blinks. He hadn't thought of it that way, but it makes sense too. "Yes, I suppose so." He nods. "So... do you know where that is?"

Gaius nods, then shakes his head, then sighs. "I do... but..."

"But what?" Princess Ophelia queries urgently.

Gaius huffs. "It's far. On foot, it would take a full day. On horseback, it would take a couple of hours, and that is time we do not have." He nods towards Morgana's still body.

Merlin's jaw clenches as he leaves Morgana's side. "And on dragon?"

Gaius blinks. "What?"

"On dragon. How long would it take?"

Gaius continues to stare. "Merlin, Nimueh is in Kilgharrah's body. You can't just—".

"How long, Gaius?"

"At the least, maybe half an hour if you hurry."

Merlin nods. "And does Morgana have half an hour?" He questions hopefully.

Gaius looks at Morgana's still body then back at the manservant. "It's pushing it a little, but yes. We don't have a choice."

Merlin runs a hand down the side of his face as he asks. "Where exactly is this place?"

Gaius replies, "In a cave, about three miles East of the only Druid camp in the Valley of the Fallen Kings."

Merlin nods, silently committing that to memory, "Alright. I need you both to trust me. Do not ask questions because we don't have time for that right now. Just know that I will be back with that cure, and we will stop Nimueh." He turns back to go to Morgana, leaning down over her and kissing her forehead before pulling away. "Take care of her." He tells the Physician. He looks at the Princess and offers a small smile. "Stay with them. I'll be back in half an hour. I'll let Arthur know that you're all here." Without another word, he walks out of the chambers and disappears down the staircase.

Gaius turns and stares after his ward with great concern. "Since the moment he arrived in Camelot, he has had the whole world on his shoulders." He wearily moves to sit at the edge of Morgana's bed. "I wonder if he'll ever catch a break."

Princess Ophelia goes to him, comfortingly patting his shoulder. "He has the heart of a warrior, Gaius. Whatever this life throws at him, _I_ know, _you_ know, and the whole _world_ will know that he will get through it."

Gaius forces a small smile onto his face and nods. "Yes, he will."

...

Merlin finds Arthur, Gwen, and King Uther crouched down behind the staircase railing at the front entrance of the castle. He quickly explains to Arthur where he's going before moving to leave, but the Prince stops him.

"I'm coming with you."

Merlin sighs. He has no time to argue with Arthur, so all he does is nod. Together, they lead the King and Gwen into the city. They almost immediately find the Knights, sill fighting off the invisible creatures. Merlin quickly pulls Gwaine, Percival, Leon, and Elyan away from the fight to lead the King and Gwen down the secret passageway back into the castle.

Merlin leaves specific instructions to the Knights to collect Morgana, Gaius, and Princess Ophelia before taking them somewhere Nimueh won't find them.

Once Merlin was sure that everyone would be safe for the time being, he leads Arthur out of Camelot and into the forest.

"How far is this place?" Arthur asks as they quickly make their way deep into the heart of the forest.

"Not far. It's a days journey on foot, a few hours on horseback—".

"A day?!" Arthur asks incredulously. "You said Morgana has about half an hour or so!"

Merlin pushes past a few shrubberies towards the light filtering through the thick trees. "I know what I said, Arthur. But we're not walking there."

"Well then how..." Arthur trails off as they suddenly step out of the forest and into a fairly large clearing.

Merlin turns, taking deep breaths as he smiles at the Prince. "You're about to see firsthand, one of the most beautiful uses of magic." The young warlock throws his head back, eyes turning up into the skies as he calls out to the only other dragon in known existence. The dragon only he and Kilgharrah know of. He roars with a booming voice, " _O drakon, e male so ftengometta tesd'hup'anankes!_ "

Birds, bugs, and tiny little critters flee out of their homes in various directions as a prolonged gust of wind begins to weave and whip through the trees.

Arthur's eyes have grown twice in size as he looks around the clearing. He's not sure exactly what to expect until he hears the faint sound of flapping wings growing louder and louder with every second. When he finally looks up into the sky, he sees a magnificently beautiful white dragon coming right _to_ them. Arthur blinks his eyes twice before looking at his manservant. "You can summon dragons?"

Merlin grins as he shrugs his shoulders. "Summon, command, control."

Arthur shakes his head in wonder. "And you couldn't even polish my armor right."

Merlin rolls his eyes as Aithusa finally lands in front of them. "I'd introduce you to her but there's no time." He quickly gestures for Arthur to follow him before climbing atop the dragon's back.

It isn't long before they're high up in the sky. Merlin silently commands the white dragon to go as fast as she can. She's not as big as Kilgharrah, but she's a whole lot faster than the Great Dragon.

Arthur is in awe of the view below, passing by quickly. He hears Merlin mutter something in another language, followed by a low screech from the dragon. Curiously, the Prince leans forward and asks, "If you can control dragons, why can't you control Nimueh?"

Merlin frowns. "She's not a dragon and Kilgharrah isn't inside his body."

Arthur doesn't ask anymore questions, instead, silently wondering how Merlin had kept all of this, his magic, his ability to control dragons, a secret from him and everyone else in Camelot. He's still a bit angry at being lied to, but he understands why. Uther would not have given Merlin a chance to plead his case. The only reason Merlin is still alive right now is because Camelot and Morgana needs him.

Before long, the white dragon begins to lower towards the ground and Merlin sits up straighter. "We're nearly there." He says over his shoulder.

Arthur nods, his hand going to grip the handle of his sword.

The dragon dips lower and lower until finally, it touches down on the ground. Merlin dismounts immediately, jogging around to speak to the dragon while Arthur quickly surveys the area.

Merlin comes back, pointing towards a small clearing. "The cave should be just beyond the trees behind the clearing."

Arthur nods, drawing his sword and holding it at the ready. "Shall we?"

Merlin nods, leading the way. As they draw nearer, Merlin whispers a dragon call meant for Kilgharrah. Several moments pass without an answer, and he tries not to read too much into it.

They walk through the trees, eyes peeled and bodies humming with readiness. "Nimueh would have already placed some enchantments around the area to keep intruders out." Merlin tells Arthur. "So be alert."

Arthur nods, his body tense and his eyes narrowed. It takes only a few moments before he sees it. "There!" He whispers to Merlin, who turns to look where he's pointing his sword.

The cave, like any other, is dark and looming over the space before it like a shadow of death. Merlin stops abruptly.

"What?" Arthur asks, looking from Merlin to the cave and back. "What is it?"

"There's— I think there's someone here." He says slowly, cautiously. His eyes move from the cave entrance to the trees around them, searching for movement.

"You thought right, Emrys."

Merlin whirls around towards the sound of the unfamiliar voice. Arthur does the same, holding his sword out at the ready.

A blonde woman he doesn't recognize stares back at them. Merlin mentally prepares himself for an attack. He felt her magic before he even saw her. "Who are you?"

The woman circles to one side. "The name is Morgause." She smiles, then raises her hand, containing a small green vial of some sort of liquid. "And I have what you desperately want, Merlin."

Merlin's eyes narrow at the vial. "A cure." He whispers and she nods. His mind races. It's too easy. How does this stranger know about Morgana? How does she know about the poison? And how does she conveniently have a cure to the poison? Too many things seem wrong, Merlin decides. It's too simple... or is it? Kilgharrah mentioned Nimueh having help to take control of him. Could this woman be Nimueh's help? Her magic is certainly strong... but what does she have to gain from helping Nimueh?

"I believe you have something of mine." The woman drawls.

The young warlock stares confusedly. "I have nothing to my name."

The woman scoffs. "I want nothing of yours. But..." She trails off, narrowing her eyes. "You _do_ have my sister, Morgana. And I want her back."

Arthur glances at Merlin's shocked expression, his eyes slightly wide as well. "The reason that impostor insisted on marrying Morgana... it's so he could bring her to this woman who claims to be her sister—".

"So the Prince of Camelot is not so dull after all." Morgause quips. "I'm not the only one who will be gaining a sibling today." She grins, "Well, that's not entirely true. _I'll_ be the only one gaining a sibling. You, will just be finding out that you _have_ one."

"What are you talking about?" Arthur asks confusedly.

"You should ask your father." Morgause replies with a conniving grin. "He ought to know _exactly_ what I'm talking about."

Merlin has had enough. There is no time for chit chat. "You can't have Morgana." He says sternly.

Morgause grins widely at him as she tucks the green vial into her dress. "Oh I think I _will_ , Merlin... and _you_ will be the one to give her to me." She shrugs, "Or she'll die."

It's clear, Merlin thinks. Someone is going to die today... and it won't be Morgana.

...

A/N: Sooo... kind of nervous about this new Morgause reveal. What do you all think? I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Anyways, thanks for reading, and please review this chapter! I'll be updating "The Mad Prince" (for those who are reading it) next, and then I'll update this fic later. Thank you again!

-McDiggin'It


	21. Chapter 21

Title: He Is Mine

Chapter Twenty One:

...

Merlin's eyes narrow at Morgause, though his attention is fixed on the vial in her hand. "What do you want with her?"

Morgause shrugs, "I know you think I have alternative motives here. But all I want is to be reunited with my sister."

Arthur scoffs, "Morgana doesn't even know you."

"And forgive us if we just don't take your word for whatever it is you're trying to do." Merlin adds.

"I don't care if you believe me." Morgause deflects. She waves a hand dismissively at the two. "Let's not pretend like you have the upper hand here. _I_ have the cure for my sister, and you do not. Let me save her." Merlin goes to say something, but Morgause cuts him off. "There is only one cure... it took me hours to make it. It was much easier to make the poison."

Merlin's eyes widen into a glare. "So _you_ were the one I met in the Crystal Cave. _You_ gave me the poison!"

Morgause grins. "Yes."

"Why?!" Merlin shouts. "You claim to be her sister, but you made a poison for her!"

"A poison _you_ administered to her." Morgause points out.

Arthur stares disbelievingly between the two. Merlin boils with rage as he glares at Morgause. "What do you want with her?" He shakes his head. "You don't care about her. You don't care that she lives!"

"I care more about her than her own father ever did!" Morgause argues. "All he does is deceive and delude himself into believing his own lies!"

Both Merlin and Arthur stare confusedly at the woman. Arthur steps forward, tightly gripping his sword as he says, "Morgana's father was an honorable man who died fighting for his Kingdom."

Morgause cackles, shaking her head in wonder. "You really have no clue, do you?"

Merlin stares from Morgause to Arthur and back, his brain quickly connecting the very few dots. After several moments, it clicks. "Morgana... she's— she's Uther's—".

"Daughter? Yes. By blood she is. But to him, she is just a mistake he made and won't be held responsible for."

Arthur blinks rapidly, repeatedly as he stares in disbelief. "What are you talking about?"

Morgause raises an eyebrow at him. "Isn't it obvious?" She asks wickedly. "Your father had an affair with a married woman. And Morgana is the bitter fruit of that affair."

Arthur's breath shallows quickly, and he tries his best to swallow the bile rising up in his throat. His father, who stood for honesty, truth, trust, dignity, and loyalty— the King of Camelot, had an affair with his best friends wife... and Morgana— Morgana, who spent most of her life feeling alone, afraid, foreign... fatherless, even motherless, is his blood. His sister. He shakes his head, still in utter disbelief. "It can't— that can't be true." He manages through a dry mouth. "My father wouldn't touch another man's wife."

"Oh, but he did." Morgause smirks.

Arthur continues to shake his head, even as Merlin presses a firm hand over his shoulder. "No... my father would've told me that Morgana was my sister. He would've told her that she was his daughter."

"Arthur." Merlin says softly. He can see the pain in the Prince's eyes. "We don't have time for this."

Arthur looks up at Morgause, noting the confident look in her eyes. She is not to be trusted, he doesn't know her. And yet, something about the look in her eyes tells him that she's not lying about this. It doesn't mean he accepts it though.

Merlin looks at Morgause and squares his shoulders. "Please." He says hoarsely. "Morgana does not have long... if you really care about her, you'll give me the cure."

Morgause chuckles as she shakes her head at the young warlock. "I've told you already, Merlin. Let me give her the cure, or she dies."

"And then what?! You would take her with you?" The warlock bellows angrily.

"That is the plan, yes."

Merlin's hands form into fists.

Morgause smirks at him. "And don't even think of taking it by force." She looks pointedly at Merlin's fists. "You see, I've already cast a spell on it. If this," She holds up the vial. "...leaves my hands without my permission, it will become ineffective. You might as well be giving Morgana water."

Arthur looks at Merlin and shakes his head. "We can't let her take Morgana." He murmurs. "She's— she's important to Camelot."

Merlin stares at Morgause as his mind frantically searches for a way out of this. But he knows there is no other way. If Morgana doesn't get that cure, she _will_ die, and he won't be able to live with himself if that happens. He gives Arthur an apologetic look and shakes his head at the Prince. "I can't let her die, Arthur."

Morgause grins and raises her hands as if to ask, Well?

With a heavy heart, Merlin finally nods. "Fine."

...

As soon as they leave the area, Arthur calls forward to Merlin anger. "How could you agree to let her take Morgana?! What if we never see her again?"

Merlin tightens his grip on Aithusa's scaled back. "We will!" He calls back.

"How can you be so sure?!"

Merlin smirks over his shoulder. "Because I'm not letting her take Morgana."

Arthur blinks confusedly. "What?"

"Just trust me."

As per Merlin's command, Aithusa rides like hell, shooting across the sky at breakneck speed. Merlin and Arthur actually have to keep their heads down, for fear of accidentally swallowing something, or being blown clean off of the dragon's back. Morgause had refused to let them escort her, insisting that she has her own way of getting there, and on time.

Merlin's heart is in his throat, despite what he said to Arthur. The only hope he has of Morgause actually being in Camelot with the cure, is the fact that she insisted she be the one to give Morgana the cure. He knows it's dangerous, but he's desperate.

Camelot comes into view, and the Prince makes a strangled sound. Smoke and fire rises from the city, half the castle is demolished, and the Nimueh in the Great Dragon's body couldn't be missed, sending streams of fire towards the southern towers. Not even a full day and Camelot is almost entirely destroyed. Merlin calls over his shoulder at the Prince. "Be ready!"

Arthur nods as the dragon begins to descend towards Camelot. Merlin leans forward, running one of his hands over the side of Aithusa's large, scaly neck. "Take us to that window." He points to the window where he knows Morgana's chambers are, and the dragon immediately goes to it.

It hovers just under the window, letting the two men climb off her back and inside the tower. Merlin turns to smile at the dragon. He can't let her go after Nimueh. Kilgharrah's body is much too big and strong for the small white dragon to defeat. He nods as he tells her to go. The dragon whines before taking back off towards the sky.

"To Morgana's chambers." Merlin tells Arthur, who nods and leads the way. The two men sprint their way up the staircase until they finally reach Morgana's chambers. Merlin is unsure of what to expect as he barges through the door, hands at the ready and eyes frantically searching the expanse of the chambers. His heart sinks when he sees two people in the corner, and neither of them is Morgana. His heart then drops when he focuses back on the two in the corner.

"Gaius!" he runs to the elderly mans side, dropping to his knees as his eyes search the elderly man for any wounds. Princess Ophelia is kneeling beside him on the other side with a worried expression on her face. Merlin can hear Arthur running into the bath chambers, calling out Morgana's name, but there's no answer and Merlin knows there won't be one. "What happened? Where's Morgana?" he asks the Princess who shakes her head profusely as she cries.

"There was a woman! I tried to stop her. She came out of nowhere and blasted Gaius against the wall. When I tried to help Morgana away from her, she used magic and threw me against the wall as well. I gained consciousness just as you two came in."

Merlin feels around Gaius' wrist for a pulse. He finds it almost immediately, steady and strong. He breathes a temporary sigh of relief as he gets up and goes to the open window. "She can't have gotten far."

Arthur comes back, shaking his head. "She got here before us and we travelled via a dragon, Merlin. She could be anywhere by now."

Merlin turns, shaking his head in disagreement. "Magic, no matter how strong and powerful someone is, is draining. Traveling here by magic would've made her weak. Princess Ophelia says that she used magic on Gaius and her as well. I'll bet my life she didn't leave with Morgana by magic. Maybe they travelled out of the castle, but that's about as far as she can get."

"So what now?" Arthur queries.

Merlin crosses back to the corner where his mentor lays, kneeling back down beside him. He raises his hand, letting it hover over Gaius' head as he whispers a spell. His eyes glow gold for a moment before fading. He looks up at Arthur who's staring down at Gaius expectantly. "In a few moments, Gaius will awake. He'll be a little woozy, but he should be fine. Take him and the Princess down to the dungeons. Get your father and Gwen out of there, and take them somewhere safe."

Arthur blinks rapidly at his manservant. "Somewhere safe? There's a bloody dragon destroying the castle out there, among an army of invisible, winged beasts!"

Merlin sighs as he gets up. "We have no choice, Arthur!" he snaps. "This entire castle is going to collapse soon, and you do _not_ want the people most important to you to be in the dungeons when that happens!"

"Where will you be going?" Princess Ophelia queries from across the unconscious Physician.

"I'm going to find Morgana and bring her back."

Princess Ophelia sighs and offers a small nod. "I'm sorry I couldn't do anything to help her."

Merlin reaches forward and closes a hand over hers. "You did plenty, Princess. Now please," he looks up at Arthur. "You must move fast."

Arthur opens his mouth to point out that Gaius is still unconscious, when the very man himself suddenly gasps, springing up into a sitting position. He blinks rapidly as he looks wildly around. "What happened?"

Merlin grins and pats him on the back. "We'll explain later." he helps the elderly man to his feet. "For now, we must move."

As Arthur helps Gaius out the door, Merlin pulls back and goes back to Morgana's open window. He notices the Princess still standing in the corner when Arthur turns back to look expectantly at her.

"Princess." Merlin begins, but Princess Ophelia shakes her head at him.

"I can't go with them."

"Why not?" Arthur pipes up.

The Princess looks at Merlin. "My fathers army should be about halfway here. I'm sure they will arrive by tomorrow evening at the earliest."

Merlin blinks at her. "I'm not following."

The Princess smiles at the warlock. "I don't know if we'll survive this. But I know that you'll be with the Lady Morgana when everything goes to hell… I want to be by my fathers side when that happens."

Merlin sighs softly as he crosses the room and takes her hands in his. "I'm so sorry you're caught up in all this."

"No." she shakes her head and releases a breathless, humorless laugh. "None of this would be happening if it weren't for me. It's _my_ fault."

"No it's not." Merlin smiles at her and squeezes her hands gently. "In the end, you told the truth and did your best to help us… you're _still_ doing your best to help us. I think you've more than redeemed yourself."

"But—".

Merlin cuts her off with a shake of his head. "I understand why you did it… all of it."

Arthur looks at Gaius, who gives him a look as if to say, 'I think we should go'. The Prince takes the hint and starts leading Gaius down the staircase.

Princess Ophelia stares at Merlin with wide, tearful eyes. "You don't resent me?"

Merlin shakes his head. "No… if it weren't for you, I never would've felt what it's like to be loved."

"But Morgana—".

"Didn't notice me until _you_ did… even if you only pretended to notice me."

The Princess sighs softly and shakes her head at him. "I wasn't pretending… at first I did, but then I got to know you better." she looks down sheepishly. "But of course, you only had eyes for her." she peeks back up at him through her lashes.

Merlin offers her a small, sad smile. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

A loud crash from somewhere on the other side of the castle startles them. Merlin looks at her and sighs. "I guess I'll see you later?"

The Princess nods and smiles at him. "I guess so."

Merlin nods and goes to the window. He stops when the Princess calls his name again. He turns to find her walking towards him as she fidgets nervously with her hands. "I just… I need to know."

"Know what?"

The Princess stares up into his eyes as she comes to a stop in front of him. "If things were different, and— and you met me before Morgana…" she trails off and looks down at her feet. She shakes her head and looks up at him. "Never mind. Forget I said anything." she turns to go, but Merlin stops her with a hand on her arm. She turns back expectantly.

"If things were different," Merlin smiles at her. "I would've chosen you in a heartbeat."

The Princess' face immediately lights up with a wide smile. She lets out a small laugh as she steps forward and pulls Merlin to her, hugging him tightly. She turns her head to whisper into his ear. "Find her and never let her go."

Merlin nods. "Okay."

When they pull away, Princess Ophelia says nothing as she leans up on her toes and kisses him chastely on the lips. "She's lucky to have you." With those parting words, she turns away from the only man she has ever loved besides her father, and she makes her way to the door with tears in her eyes.

Merlin turns, looking out the window once more. He calls on Aithusa, waiting only a few moments before the white dragon swoops up below the window sill. He mounts the dragon's back, silently commanding her to scour the castle surroundings, and the forest.

…

"She can't have gotten far." Merlin mutters to himself as his eyes stay peeled for anything out of the ordinary on the ground. The first place he'd thought to look was the stables, but he didn't even have to go there to know that Morgause wouldn't be there. The stables were completely obliterated by Nimueh. Thinking of which, Merlin is really glad Aithusa isn't very big. She's not even half Kilgharrah's size. Thanks to the white dragons small size, they were able to stay out of Nimueh's line of sight.

Just as Merlin is about to command Aithusa to move further up the forest, something in the corner of his eye-line catches his attention. He turns his head just in time to see a billowing cloak disappear beneath the branches of a large tree. "There!" Merlin shouts.

Aithusa dives towards the direction he points at, her wings folding behind her just below Merlin's feet before they unfold rapidly, letting the wind catch on them to slow her descend. Merlin dismounts as soon as Aithusa touches the ground, sprinting towards the movement just beyond their landing place.

He sees Morgause on a horse, and Morgana slouched in front of her onto the back of the horse's mane. "MORGAUSE!" Merlin calls thunderously. The witch's head snaps in his direction and her eyes widen. She glares as she continues riding, but Merlin is not going to let her get away again. With all the power surging inside him, he extends his hands towards her letting out a roar of anger as magic shoots out of his fingertips and towards the blonde woman.

Morgause only has a second to react before she's being knocked off her horse by the force of the warlocks magic. Merlin is ready for Morgana's inevitable fall, pushing his magic out further to catch her body just before she hits the ground.

Morgause screams in a fit of rage, getting to her feet and sending a blind blast of her own magic at Merlin.

Merlin dives out of the way, Morgause's spell just missing him by an inch and a half. He quickly rolls back onto his feet and takes off at a sprint towards Morgause. His arms are already swinging up and forward, sending spell after spell at the witch. He's not even sure if he's hitting anything. All he knows is that he cannot afford to stop, as it will give Morgause time to flee with Morgana again.

Morgause's piercing scream causes him to stop. He jogs over to where she lays, unconscious and bleeding from he head. Merlin's eyebrows furrow for a second as he looks around. He sees a rather large rock sticking out of the ground and covered in Morgause's blood.

"Merlin?"

Merlin's heart flips twice in his chest as he whirls around. A long sigh of relief escapes him at the sight of a very confused Morgana, blinking up at him from a few feet away. "Morgana—". He doesn't get to finish saying what he was thinking, because in the next moment, he's being blasted off his feet.

"MERLIN!" Morgana screams in horror, her eyes darting towards the blonde woman who's getting up from the ground with a large grin on her face. The woman looks at her, and she glares. "Who the hell are you?!"

The woman's grin widens. "I am Morgause... your sister."

...

A/N: Heyyy! So sorry for the late update. As some of you know, I'm also working on other fics on top of this one. However that is not an excuse. I apologize. Anyways, this fic has just a few chapters left. Anyways I hope you liked this chapter. Let me know in a review!

-McDiggin'It


	22. Chapter 22

Title: He is Mine

A/N: Hello you guys! First off, I want to apologize for my absence and lack of updates on all my fics. I took some time off from writing to focus on my work and school. It has been a busy few months for me, and I hope you all understand. But I'm back and I'm so glad to say that I'll finally be finishing some of my unfinished fics. For the time being, I'll be working on this fic, and The Mad Prince. I have to say, I hit a bit of a writers block just before I stopped writing altogether. It was hard for me to get back into writing. But I rewatched the entire Merlin series these past two weeks while I was on break from school, and it really helped me get back into writing. So, here I am, finishing my stories. Finally! Anyways, I want to thank you all for your patience and your reviews. You're all such amazing people, including some of the people who have used strong language to describe their anger towards me for not updating. I understand your anger, but please understand that I'm not getting paid to write any of this. I have to focus more on the work that does pay me so I can survive. Thank you all again, guys and girls!

-McDiggin'It

...

Chapter Twenty Two:

...

The bewildered look on Morgana's face can't even begin to describe the confusion brewing in her mind. She's on her feet, staring at the woman standing across from her with fresh blood staining the side of her face.

Amongst the confusion of realizing that she's no longer dying from the poison she'd induced, is all of this— whatever is happening.

"I know it's a lot to take in, but it's true." The woman continues. "I would not lie to my own sister."

Sister? Morgana stares blankly. She has no sister. She's an only child. Her parents would've told her if she had another sibling. As if the stranger could read her thoughts, she continues on.

"We do not share the same father... however, we do share the same mother."

Morgana blinks rapidly as she shakes her head. "No... no, you're saying my mother was unfaithful to my father."

"Our mother had me before she married your father." Morgause explains. "However, she is not without fault. She made a mistake that led to you."

"What?" Morgana's anger begins to bubble up inside her chest. "Lies! My mother was a kind and just woman!"

Morgause raises her hands as if to say she's surrendering. As if she means no harm. But Morgana knows better. Her beloved Merlin lays a few feet away from her, unconscious because of this stranger who claims to be her sister.

"She was... faithful to you. But not to your father... not because she didn't love him... she did... but she also loved another."

"Your father?" Morgana plays along, if only to understand what Morgause is trying to say.

Morgause shakes her head. "No... yours."

More confused than ever, Morgana shakes her head and yells, "What your saying makes no sense."

Morgause nods immediately, continuing to raise her hands. "I know... because you don't know the truth of where you came from." Morgause pauses and slowly reaches into a small pocket at her side. She pulls something out, a locket. "Or more precisely, _who_ you came from."

Morgana blinks at the woman. "What are you talking about?"

"This locket." Morgause says slowly. "Belonged to your father... your _real_ father."

"My real— my father is Gorlois!" Morgana shouts in anger. How dare this stranger just walk into her life and tell her that her entire life is a lie? That she knew nothing about her parentage?

"He is... he always will be." Morgause explains. "But he is not your biological father, and I can prove it."

Morgana knows she should ignore the strangers words, but she seemed so sure, it makes her wonder. "How?"

Morgause smiles. "This locket bears the mark of your father... it also bears a message. A message from our mother."

"A letter?" Morgana asks incredulously. "Anyone can forge a letter."

"Not a letter..." Morgause trails off as she opens the locket with the simple mutter of a spell. A small click is heard as the locket opens up, and a cloud of smoke rises out of it, forming a circle, before shimmering into an image of a woman.

Morgana's eyes widen as tears form in her eyes. "Mother." She whispers softly. It has been so long since her mother passed. Seeing this magical image of her makes her heart swell with both joy and overwhelming sadness.

"My dearest Morgause..." her mother begins to speak from the locket. Morgana gasps. She thought she'd forgotten her mother's voice, but it turns out, she hasn't.

"What is that?" Morgana asks.

"A spell used to magically capture a message. It is how our people communicate."

"Our people?" Morgana asks.

Morgause nods. "Magical beings."

Morgana shakes her head. "What?— I— what are you talking about?"

"Sister—".

"Don't call me your sister!" Morgana bellows angrily. "I refuse to listen to someone I don't know!"

Morgause looks down at the image of their mother. "Then listen to her."

The message continues from the magical image of Vivienne.

"... by the time you see this, you'll be old enough to know that you are special. You have a gift that may seem like a burden at first. But I know you'll grow into a strong woman, and you will be able to learn how to control your gift. I am truly sorry that I cannot keep you here with me, but understand that it is a choice I made to keep you safe from harm. I will think of you everyday, and wish upon all the stars that you are happy, healthy, and safe. This is all I am able to leave with you..." Vivienne trails off and smiles as she looks down at something. Something in her arms. When she looks up again, she continues as she raises her arms a little. A beautiful, sleeping little baby comes to view. "...This, and the knowledge that you have a younger sister, Morgana. She is but 6 weeks old, but she is growing fast... she possesses the same special gift you have. This locket containing this message belongs to her real father. Should you grow up and wish to meet her, I hope this locket will help you find your way. It is my wish that my beloved daughters are happy, and if you can find that together, I will be at peace. I hope you know that I only gave you away to keep you safe from harm. Know this and remember that I will always love you... your mother... Vivienne."

The image shimmers for a second before turning back into smoke and filtering quickly back into its place in the locket. The locket closes abruptly, making a snapping sound.

Morgana finally blinks, her eyes filling quickly with tears. With magic, there is no telling whether or not this woman who claims to be her sister, had conjured up the entire message with it... but... something inside her knows that she is telling the truth. At least, the truth of of their relation. She sinks to her knees as her heart hammers inside her chest and she raises her eyes towards the woman holding the locket. She does have some of her mother's features. Her mother's hair, nose, collar bones...

"This message is the reason I'm here. Mother wanted us to be together. To be happy together as a family. We are flesh and blood, Morgana."

Morgana's eyes shut tightly as she tries to think of what to say. What to do. She has a sister. She'd always wanted one growing up. And now, here she is in the flesh, staring at her.

"Mother will be at peace, knowing that we are together, Morgana. You and me. Sisters, taking on the world together. I have a home that has already been prepared for us. We could live happily there, do whatever we want, whenever we want."

Morgana couldn't help herself. The thought of leaving Camelot is almost appealing. She has been controlled by Uther all her life. Just the thought of being free from his control and tyranny seems like the greatest thing in the world... but— she has Merlin now. Perhaps, if she asked him to go with her, they can finally be together in a place where their love is not forbidden. A place where they can openly hold hands, kiss, walk together. Hell, be _seen_ together!

In her heart, she wants what Morgause is offering. A life of total freedom... but she's not naive. There's always a catch. There are also, a hundred questions she needs answered.

She turns towards the place where Merlin had been blasted off his feet. The only reason she hadn't immediately run to his side, was because she already saw the rise and fall of his chest. He's alive. Unconscious, but alive.

"I know you have affections for him." Morgause says slowly.

Morgana looks at Morgause with narrowed eyes. "How could you possibly know that? How could you possibly know _anything_ about me?"

Morgause sighs. "Because I have eyes... I can see the way you look at him. The worry in your eyes. The hesitance to take my offer."

Morgana shakes her head. "I— I can't just leave Camelot."

"And why not?" Morgause asks. "Uther will never let you be with a manservant, let alone one with magic."

Morgana shakes her head again. She knows that Morgause speaks some truth. But everything may change soon. Merlin, who is the epitome of magic may be the only hope for Camelot. And when Uther sees that, he may realize that magic is not all bad.

"You know better than anyone of Uther's hatred for magic and anything that resembles it... and you know he won't hesitate to execute those who possess that magic. Merlin, for one... and you."

Morgana's eyes narrow at Morgause. She'd heard that part about her possessing special gifts, but that can't be true... she has never in her life used magic or anything of the sort. Before she could open her mouth and say exactly that, Morgause continues.

"Your dreams..." Morgause says slowly. "They're prophetic, are they not?"

Morgana shakes her head. She'd only ever dreamed about Merlin's death. "None of my dreams have come to pass."

"Yet." Morgause says confidently. "The reason of Merlin's deaths in your dreams... Uther, am I right?"

Morgana stares unblinkingly. "How do you even know about my dreams?"

"Because I saw what you saw. I saw Uther execute Merlin. Is that not why you agreed to marry the impostor from Mercia?"

Morgana's eyes widen at the woman before her. "How do you know that? How do you know any of what happened?"

"I told you... we are sisters. Linked through our mother. I see what you see in your dreams. I know what you feel in your heart."

Morgana shakes her head profusely. "Then why haven't I seen or heard anything from you?"

"Because I knew of your existence. You didn't know until now, of mine."

"And the locket." Morgana says with a shaky voice. "It belonged to my— to my real father?" Saying it out loud tastes bitter on her tongue. Up until now, she'd truly believed Gorlois' was her real father. Now, she's not sure.

Morgause nods. "It bears the mark of his Kingdom".

"Kingdom?" Morgana asks confusedly. "He was a noble?"

Morgause shakes her head. "He is a King."

Morgana swallows hard. "Is?"

Morgause raises the locket and turns it over to the side that Morgana hasn't seen yet.

Morgana's eyes widen into saucers before quickly filling with tears. "That bears the insignia of Camelot."

Morgause nods. "It does... it bears the mark of Uther Pendragon. Your _real_ father."

She'd known it the moment she saw the insignia. Her heart sinks as countless images of Uther flash before her eyes. Images of him caring for her when she was but a child. Images of him showing his care for her... and yet...

Morgana shakes her head. "Did he— did he know?"

Morgause nods in confirmation. "Before you were even born."

"That makes no sense. Why didn't he tell me?" Morgana asks defensively.

Morgause raises her eyebrows at her. "Because Uther cares about no one but himself. You've seen the way he treats people he has nothing to gain from. He's a selfish King, a tyrant, and a man who lied to you for ten years."

At the corner of Morgana's eye, she sees a movement to her right where Merlin lays. He's waking up and she doesn't let on that she knows. However, she doesn't need to let on anything, because Morgause turns and looks at him. Morgana's eyes move from Morgause to Merlin, and she feels great relief at seeing him getting to his feet. She senses more than hears Morgause begin to mutter in some odd language before she moves quickly to stand between her and Merlin. "If you hurt him again, I will _never_ forgive you." She spat.

Morgause smiles at her and nods over her shoulder. "I know... I wasn't going to hurt him."

Morgana's eyebrows furrow as she turns to look at Merlin.

The manservant blinks several times as he raises his hand to the wound on the side of his head. The wound, which is now magically healing itself. Morgana looks back at Morgause, who smiles at her. "Just because you healed him once, doesn't make everything okay. You're the reason he was hurt in the first place."

Morgause nods. "I apologize. I was simply defending myself."

Morgana rolls her eyes.

Merlin stumbles towards Morgana and Morgause, hands already held in front of him, ready to attack the latter. "Morgana." He says as he makes his way to her side. "Get behind me."

Morgana moves to stand only marginally behind him.

Morgause raises her hands again as if in surrender. "Are you going to kill me, warlock?"

Merlin glares. "That depends... are you going to try and stop me from taking Morgana back?"

Morgause looks behind the manservant at Morgana. "That's up to her."

Merlin's eyebrows furrow as he looks over his shoulder at Morgana.

Morgana steps up beside him and gently wraps her hand around one of his. Merlin stares confusedly at her. She holds no fear in her eyes. No anger. No confusion— at least, not as much as he'd thought. Had he been unconscious for long?

"This woman... Morgause..." Morgana says softly. "She's my sister."

Merlin goes to disagree. "We don't know that for sure—".

"She showed me a message from my mother. A message inside a locket that belonged to my father."

"Your father." Merlin says slowly as he turns to look at the locket in Morgause's hand. "Uther." He says softly.

Morgana nods. "Uther..." she confirms. "Did you know?"

Merlin shakes his head. "I found out earlier today."

"I don't know if I should believe it." Morgana says softly, her voice nearly a whisper. "Why wouldn't he tell me?" She shakes her head. "He knew, but he never told me."

Merlin squeezes her hand gently. "I don't know why Uther never told you that you were his daughter... that's something you'll have to ask him yourself."

Morgana shakes her head. "I don't know if I even want to see him again."

Merlin blinks at her. He hadn't expected that. "Morgana, he— I know he wasn't your favorite person in the world, but he definitely cares for you."

"No he doesn't!" Morgana shouts. "He lied to me all these years! Ten years, Merlin! Not once in those years did he ever tell me a thing. He never spoke about my mother, let alone mentioned her name!"

Merlin could see how much this was hurting her. The pain in her eyes makes his heart ache. But he knows that leaving Camelot is not an option. At least not now. Gaius is there, and so are Arthur and Gwen. So many people he cares about are there. He turns fully, taking Morgana's hands and pulling her towards him. She stares at him with wide eyes.

Merlin raises a hand and caresses her cheek. "Morgana, we cannot leave Camelot. Whether Uther is a good person or not, doesn't matter. He's bitter and afraid of magic. That is why he hates it... but he doesn't understand it."

Morgana shakes her head. "He never will."

"Maybe... but I know he loves you more than he hates magic." Merlin tells her.

Morgana scoffs, "How can you even say that?"

"Because I saw it with my own eyes." Merlin replies. "When I showed him my magic, he didn't wait a second before ordering my execution... but as soon as he found out that you were poisoned, and that I was the only one able to find a cure, he put aside his hatred for magic so that I may save you from the poison your own sister made."

Choosing to put aside the last part for later, Morgana continues to be in denial. She's still trying to wrap her head around the fact that Uther is her real father. All this time, all these years, and he never said a thing. He never batted an eyelash when he spoke of Gorlois' bravery and courage, and yet— he had bedded Gorlois' wife. The mere thought of that betrayal against the man she'd called her father all her life, makes her heart bitter with anger and disgust. Anger at her mother, Uther, and Morgause... her own flesh and blood. She laughs humorlessly as she pulls her hands from Merlin and looks at Morgause.

"Uther lied to me. My mother betrayed my father. And you," Morgana says with narrowed eyes. "You say you are my sister, and yet you poisoned me."

"It was the only way I could get to you. Save you and bring you with me so that we may be together."

"You're lying." Merlin says angrily. "You only wanted to get Morgana so that you may use her."

"That's a lie!" Morgause shouts, her voice echoing throughout the forest.

"How about the vision you showed me?" Merlin asks. "In the cave... am I to believe that you made that up? Or is that the future you wanted? To turn Morgana against the world, against the people who love and care for her?"

"Vision?" Morgana cuts in confusedly. "What vision?"

Merlin looks at her and shakes his head. "It doesn't matter. What matters is that I'm here to protect you and that you are safe."

"No." Morgana shakes her head. She wants to know. "What vision?"

Merlin looks at Morgause, who is now looking at the ground. "I think Morgause would explain it better."

Morgana looks expectantly at Morgause, who sighs and shakes her head. "It's an old prophecy... the fruit of betrayal and rightful heir to a throne will grow in power with magic, and bring the world to its knees... you are to be the doom of the five Kingdoms."

Morgana blinks at Morgause, stares for several moments, then breaks out into a fit of anger. "Me?! Oh, that's just great!" She bellows sarcastically. "I find out that I have a sister, my father isn't my father, my real father is alive and didn't tell me, my mother is apparently popular with men, _and_ I'm supposed to be some powerful sorceress who will end the entire world?!"

Morgause proceeds cautiously, not wanting to further upset her sister. "I know it's a lot to take in."

"A lot?!" Morgana shouts at the woman. "I woke up this morning, thinking that nothing could top the dilemma and burden I was carrying! Now you're telling me that I might end up killing everyone in the five Kingdoms?!"

Merlin steps in then, pulling Morgana to him and taking her face in his hands. "Morgana, look at me." She does so, and Merlin gives her a look of love and adoration. "You will _not_ become the woman in that prophecy. Your future is for you to decide... I know in my heart that you are a good person. You have a good, kind, and loving heart... and not a single person in this world can change that, if you do not want it."

Morgause stares at the two as they exchange sickening looks of adoration. "This is all very touching." She says loudly. "But I cannot stay here any longer."

Morgana looks at Morgause as Merlin glares.

"What is your choice, sister?"

Morgana looks from Merlin to Morgause and back. She wants, craves the freedom which Morgause offers. But she knows in her heart where her loyalties lie. They'll always lie on the side Merlin chooses.

He stares at her as he offers a small smile. "The choice is yours." He says softly.

Morgana turns her head to look at Morgause and she finally decides, "I cannot go with you."

Morgause looks down at the ground in defeat. "That is a pity." She says softly, then raises her eyes to meet her sisters. She smiles for the first time. "I would've loved to have learned more about you."

"You still can." Merlin says quietly.

Morgause raises her eyebrows at the warlock. "I thought you didn't like me."

Merlin shrugs. "You poisoned the woman I love... am I not justified?"

Morgause smirks. "Touché."

"You can come back with us." Morgana says softly.

Merlin nods. "We could use your help."

Morgause frowns as she shakes her head. "I cannot... Nimueh is also my kin. Whether I like her or not, she is a Priestess of the Old Religion. Going against her would be an act of defiance against the Old Religion... I can only promise that I won't be a part of her plan to destroy Camelot... despite my anger towards King Uther, I cannot bring myself to attack where my sister resides. However, I can help you with something."

The couple stare at her curiously.

Morgause continues. "The cave where we met... it's guarded by magical creatures, some of which are under Nimueh's control."

Merlin nods. "I expected as much."

Morgause shakes her head. "The cave is filled with angry spirits, Warlock... the spirits of those who died at Uther's hand. Spirits who will be hellbent on stopping you from getting to Nimueh's body."

Morgana looks worriedly at Merlin. She knows he's powerful, but is he a match for all those bitter spirits who want to see Uther fall? Merlin offers her a reassuring smile, but it does anything but reassure her. She knows how unpredictable magic can be. She's seen the evil wield it. She's seen people use it selfishly. She's seen people use it for revenge. It's dangerous and dark... and Merlin— her beloved Merlin, might be walking right into the midst of that.

Morgause sighs as she shakes her head. "Part of me doesn't want you to succeed in stopping Nimueh... but I know my sister will not forgive me if I let you walk in there to die." She looks down at the ground before lifting her hand and opening her palm. A small blue stone rises from her open hand and glides slowly over to Merlin, where he reaches out and takes it.

He looks curiously up at Morgause. "What is it?"

"Wægn h¯ænan orgildelifiende cwiclifigende." Morgause drawls in the ancient language.

Merlin looks up at her, his eyes full of question. "The Stone of the Living." He translates. He has heard of it. However, he knows nothing about it.

Morgause nods. "It is the enemy of the Stone of Mortem."

Morgana looks at the stone in Merlin's hand.

"So it should do the opposite of each other."

Morgause smiles and nods. "Indeed... the Stone of Mortem grants life to the dead. The Stone of the Living takes away life from that which should be dead."

Merlin's eyes widen as he looks at Morgause. "It could kill Nimueh."

"And keep the spirits away?" Morgana looks expectantly at Morgause.

Morgause looks at Morgana with a sad smile. "I must be going." Before she could fully turn away, Morgana bounds towards her and pulls her into an embrace. Morgause's eyes widen as tears begin to form in them.

"Thank you..." Morgana whispers. "... sister."

Morgause tightly hugs her sister back, nodding her head into her shoulder before pulling quickly away and disappearing as she turns. Morgana stares at the forest trees beyond the place where Morgause was standing just a moment ago. It saddens her to see Morgause leave. She was just beginning to feel a connection to her, and now she's gone.

Merlin sidles up beside her and takes her hand in his. She looks up at him with a smile. She squeezes his hand gently. "I believe we have a witch to kill." She says softly.

...

A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope this chapter wasn't a complete snooze fest for you all. I apologize for any grammatical errors and whatnot. It's been a while and I don't have a beta. Anyways, I wanted this chapter to go a little bit into Morgana and Morgause's backstory. There's still not much of a story to it, but I feel that this chapter is essential to the finale. The main villain in this fic is Nimueh, and I want everyone to see that. Although I completely understand why Nimueh wanted to destroy Uther in the show, I still have to write her as the villain because a made up character would not only be hard to write, it would also take another backstory that would probably take at least 5 chapters. Also, I wanted Morgause to be (kind of) good for once (even though she poisoned Morgana). Please leave a review and let me know what you think of this chapter. I'll be working on The Mad Prince next, and I'll try to update this fic as soon as possible. Also, in between updates, I might start posting more Mergana one-shots. But that's not a guarantee. Thank you all so much again.

-McDiggin'It


	23. Chapter 23

Title: He Is Mine

A/N: Hey all! Sorry for the late update. I had to write a paper for my English class. But anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter! R&R!

-McDiggin'It

...

Chapter: Twenty-Three

...

Arthur moves through the castle quickly, his eyes peeled for any and all movements. Gaius follows behind him while Princess Ophelia takes up the rear. The Prince peeks down the corridor, making sure it's empty before gesturing for Gaius and Princess Ophelia to follow him as he moves quietly down the hall. They don't have long to go before they reach the entrance to the dungeons.

"Sire." Gaius says quietly as the Prince stops abruptly. A shadow passes through the window several feet ahead of them.

Arthur looks at the Royal Physician. "What is it?"

Gaius nods his head towards the end of the hall. "The dungeons are just below the East tower... that's where Nimueh is right now."

The Prince grits his teeth in frustration. "We must hurry."

Gaius shakes his head at the young Prince. "No... _you_ must hurry. I will only slow you down."

Arthur shakes his head. "No. I can't just leave you here alone. Merlin will never forgive me if I let anything happen to you."

Princess Ophelia steps in then, smiling at the Prince. "I'll stay with Gaius. You go ahead and save Gwen and your father."

"But—".

"We're wasting time." Gaius says sternly. "I may be old, but I know a little thing or two about magic."

Arthur blinks at the Physician in bewilderment. "You _do_?"

Gaius frowns at the Prince. "I've been living with Merlin all these years, Arthur. Surely you didn't think I had no idea he was a sorcerer."

"Yes, but that doesn't necessarily mean you have magic." Arthur murmurs.

Gaius raises his eyebrows at the Prince. "I've used magic long before you were even born."

Arthur makes a face at that. "And my father knew?"

Gaius nods. "He made me promise I would never use it again after the Great Purge."

Arthur sighs and shakes his head. "Right... it seems like my father has been keeping secrets from me all my life." The Prince pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes briefly as he thinks of what to do. After several moments, he turns to look between the elderly physician and the Princess of Ergyng. "Make your way out of the castle and down into the villages. The Knights should still be down there, and it should be safer than in here. I'll get Gwen and my father and meet you down there."

Gaius and the Princess both nod in agreement. "Be careful." Gaius tells Arthur, who nods in return.

"You too." Arthur nods, the turns towards the Princess and offers a small smile. "We will meet up with your father and his men when we make it to the city."

As Gaius and Princess Ophelia makes their way towards the corridor that leads out into the courtyards, Arthur makes a run for the dungeons. He hopes and prays that Gwen and his father are unharmed. They cannot afford anymore casualties.

...

As Morgana turns to head back to Camelot, Merlin pulls her to a halt. She stops, looking questioningly at him. "What is it?" She asks.

Merlin shakes his head and stares at her. "Morgause called me a warlock... and you weren't surprised." He lets go of her hand as he stares warily at her.

Morgana sighs as she offers him a smile. "I was still conscious when Gaius asked you how you were going to stop Nimueh... when he asked if you were going to use your magic."

Merlin blinks at her. "You heard us?"

Morgana nods. "I did... while I was paralyzed, I could still see and hear everything that was happening around me."

Merlin looks down at his feet as worry begins to ebb it's way into his heart. "I'm sorry... I didn't want you to find out that way."

Morgana shakes her head and takes his hand in hers. "I know why you didn't tell anyone... including me."

"I didn't want you to have to worry." He whispers as he looks at her. "I— I didn't know how to tell anyone. I'd been keeping my magic a secret all my life."

Morgana smiles at him and reaches up to caress his cheek with her fingers. "I know... I had some time to think about you having magic. At first, I was confused, afraid, and admittedly, a bit angry at you." Merlin nods, but she shakes her head and takes a step closer to him. "... but then I thought about all that you've been through. I thought about Uther's hatred towards magic and how it made it hard for you to trust anyone with your secret. I thought about your kindness, loyalty, and love." She moves her hand to the back of Merlin's head, gently pulling him down so that their foreheads are touching. "I thought about the worry in your voice when you promised me that you would find a cure for me... and I concluded that you are one of the few people in this world that possesses magic and uses it for good. I know Uther is wrong about magic. I've known for some time. It isn't evil. It just _is_ , and it's up to the person who wields it, whether to use it for good or bad."

Merlin sighs softly as he closes his eyes and smiles with relief. When he opens his eyes again, he asks tentatively. "So your feelings for me... have they changed?"

Morgana chuckles. "You promised that you would tell me the truth later... it may not have happened the way you planned, but I know you would've told me eventually. As for my feelings for you," she pauses to smile up at him. "They will _never_ change."

"I feel the same way." He smiles, then pulls at her hand gently. "I want to show you something."

Merlin takes Morgana towards the clearing where Aithusa had dropped him off. He doesn't need to call her, for a short distance away, she stands majestically with her wings folded behind her.

Morgana gasps as she stares at the creature. "It's— It's a dragon." She breathes softly.

Merlin smiles at her and nods. "Her name is Aithusa."

Morgana looks at him questioningly. "How do you know?"

Merlin turns towards the white dragon and raises his hand in front of him. "Because I named her." Aithusa immediately raises her head, looking at Merlin and Morgana from where she waits patiently, before bounding towards them.

Morgana goes to take a step back, but Merlin stops her by taking her hand in his. "It's okay." He says softly. "She's harmless."

Morgana watches in awe and wonder as the magical creature comes to a stop directly in front of them. It doesn't wait as it takes a step back before bowing its head towards Merlin. Merlin smiles fondly at the creature.

"What do you mean you named her?"

Merlin nods towards Aithusa. "I hatched her. She's only a little over a year old."

Morgana stares at Merlin in awe. "Sorcerers can do that too? Hatch dragons, I mean."

"Dragonlords." Merlin corrects. "I am the last of the dragonlords."

Morgana gapes up at him and raises her eyebrows. "Dragonlords?"

"I have the ability to speak to them, understand them." He raises his hand and touches Aithusa's snout as he smiles fondly. Aithusa immediately nuzzles closer to him. "I am her kin."

Morgana takes several moments to process that new information. When she finally lets it sink in, she laughs softly and shakes her head. "And you were all of these things, a sorcerer and a dragonlord, while in a kingdom that bans it." She raises her hand and caresses his bicep. "My gods, you really have a bad boy streak going." She giggles.

Merlin smirks at her and winks. "What can I say? I'm a man of many talents."

Morgana couldn't help leaning up and placing a kiss on his lips. "Hmmm... perhaps you should show me some more of your many talents later on." She purrs.

Merlin swallows as his eyes widen marginally. "Perhaps." Aithusa snorts, interrupting the young couple. Merlin then looks at Morgana and smiles. "You up for a dragon ride?"

Morgana eyes widen comically. "Absolutely not." She shakes her head and backs away. "There is no way I'm going that high."

Merlin chuckles as he pulls her close. "I won't let you fall, Morgana... I promise." He holds his hand out to her.

She knows he would never let any harm come to her. Even before she found out about his magic. She always felt safe when he was around. And maybe a part of her always knew that he is so much more than just a servant. She nods as she places her hand in his. "How could I say no to that face?"

Merlin smirks as he helps her onto Aithusa's back. Morgana immediately grabs hold of the only thing she can— Aithusa's scales, as Merlin climbs up behind her. As soon as Merlin sits down, Aithusa starts off in a run before taking off up into the sky.

Try as she might, she couldn't stop herself from letting out a high pitched scream of terror. It's rather embarrassing, but then Merlin wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her against his chest. She slowly relaxes against him as Aithusa rises higher and higher up into the sky. The scenery below is breathtakingly beautiful, and she couldn't help but wonder how many times Merlin has seen it all from the back of a dragon.

She hadn't even noticed that she was gripping his arms tightly until Merlin whispers into her ear, "I won't let you fall."

She relaxes even more, letting go of his arms to reach behind her and pull his head down over her shoulder, before turning her own head and pressing her lips against his. It's all so romantic, riding off into the sunset together with the love of her life. But they have a mission to accomplish.

...

Arthur's heart hammers wildly in his chest, paranoia getting the best of him as he descends the staircase leading to the dungeons. He can hear and feel the rumbling of the towers above him as the evil witch in the Dragon's body wreaks havoc. "Gwen!" He calls down into the dark corridor.

"Arthur?" Gwen emerges, holding a bloodied cloth in her hands. Her eyes are wide with fear and the front of her dress is equally as bloody as the cloth she holds.

Arthur's heart plummets as he rushes towards her with worry. "You're hurt!"

Gwen shakes her head to him as she leads him towards the back of the dungeon. "The blood isn't mine." She looks down at the gash on the outside of her right forearm. "Not all of it, at least."

Arthur pulls her towards him and hugs her. "I'm sorry you got hurt." He whispers into her hair.

Gwen shakes her head against his chest. "It's nothing, considering there's a dragon trying to kill us all."

Arthur pulls back slightly as he looks around. "Where's my father?"

Gwen points towards the corner of a cell. "He's hurt, but I think he'll be okay."

Arthur lets go of her to go to his father. The light is dim in the cell, but it's just enough for him to see the blood on the side of his head. He stops and drops to his knees beside the King. He immediately notices where the blood is coming from. Under the thin bandage around his head, his right ear is missing. Arthur swallows hard as he looks into his father's tired and fearful eyes. "What happened?" He asks worriedly.

Gwen answers immediately. "More of the invisible creatures showed up in the city. The Knights fought them off as best they could, but there were too many. Gwaine and Elyan got us back to the castle before leaving again to help, but one of the creatures managed to follow us." She looks down at the King and shakes her head. "It attacked us."

Uther looks past his son at the maid who had nearly died to protect him. "She saved my life." He says hoarsely. "Pushed me out of the way just in time. If she hadn't, it would've been my head and not just my ear that'd been severed."

Tears collect in the young Prince's eyes. Despite his anger at the things he'd learned about his father and all his wrongdoings, he couldn't help but feel immensely relieved and glad that he's alive. They can discuss all of that later though. He helps sit him up. "I don't doubt that for a second. Gwen is one of the bravest people I know."

Uther nods as he reaches up to touch the cloth that Gwen had wrapped around his head to stem the blood flowing out of the hole where his ear once was.

"Can you stand?" Arthur asks as he gets up.

Uther nods, and with the help of his son and Morgana's maid, he finally leaves the corner he'd been slumped in for the past half hour.

Arthur leads them out into the corridor and up the staircase. "We must hurry. It's only a matter of time before the Dragon gets down here."

...

As Aithusa lowers to the ground, Merlin could see the mouth of the cave from where they are. He climbs off of Aithusa's back before helping Morgana down. Morgana smiles as she moves to follow him, but Merlin stops her with a hand on her arm. "Maybe you should stay here."

Morgana blinks at him incredulously. "And do what? Guard the dragon?" She asks sarcastically.

Merlin sighs and gives her a look of concern. "You heard what Morgause said about the cave."

"And?" Morgana asks with raised eyebrows.

"And it's dangerous." Merlin replies. "I don't— I can't lose you...". He pauses to scrub a hand down his face. "If anything happens to you in there, I will never forgive myself."

Morgana's features soften as she smiles lovingly at him. She pulls him close by the front of his tunic and kisses him once again. "Then don't let anything happen to me in there." She says softly, before letting go of his shirt and walking past him towards the cave.

"Wait." Merlin calls to her. She stops and looks expectantly at him. Merlin lifts his tunic up to reveal a sheathed dagger tucked into the waist of his trousers. He pulls it out and walks around to the front of Aithusa.

Morgana watches curiously as he whispers something to the white dragon. It sniffs at the dagger before Merlin pulls it out of its sheath and holds it up over his head. Before Morgana could ask what he's doing, Aithusa opens her mouth and lets out a string of fire at the blade. She nearly screams, worried that Merlin's hand would burn, but he doesn't even flinch or make a sound. That's when she notices the state of the fire. It shimmers and glows, like the sun filtering through stained glass. It's beautiful.

When Aithusa closes her mouth, she lets out a puff of smoke through her nostrils before bowing her head. Merlin smiles and thanks her, patting her head fondly. "We'll be right back." He promises.

He makes his way over to Morgana and holds the dagger up to her.

"What _was_ that?" Morgana asks curiously as she takes the blade and inspects it. It's warm to the touch. Insignificant, light, and not the sharpest weapon... but it felt powerful in her hand. There's almost a steady hum to it.

"Dragons breath." Merlin nods towards the dagger. "Can turn a mortal blade into a weapon that can kill that which is immortal."

Morgana raises her eyebrows. "And you're giving it to _me_?"

Merlin nods. "I have my magic. I thought you should have something as well... in case something goes wrong." He shrugs, trying to act nonchalant. "Unless you want to stay here, where there's less of a chance of anything going wrong." He looks down, avoiding her eyes.

Morgana smiles at him and shakes her head. "I'm not staying here, Merlin. You know I will only follow you if you leave me here."

He looks up and raises an eyebrow at her. "What if I magically bind you to that tree?" He points towards the nearest tree.

Morgana snorts at the small tree. "I will take the bloody tree with me into that cave if I have to." She grabs his tunic and pulls him against her again. "I'm going." She says one last time. She leans up, kisses his chin, before turns, and continues to the cave.

Merlin sighs as he watches her for a moment. She really is the bravest, fiercest, and the most beautifully stubborn woman he has ever met. He smiles as he follows her to the cave, but his worry continues to grow. Once at the mouth of the cave, he stops to ask Morgana if she's _absolutely_ sure she doesn't want to stay outside where it's safe.

Morgana shakes her head at him. "I'm not changing my mind." She tells him sternly. "We'll do this _together_."

Merlin nods and smiles at her, despite his concern for her safety. "Then stay close." He says, before continuing to lead their way in.

He holds her hand, making sure to keep her close behind him as he raises his hand in front of him and commands a ball of light to illuminate their way. Morgana says nothing as she stares at the ball of light in awe and wonder. Merlin stops when he hears a thud echo from inside the cave. He breathes in deeply, closing his eyes as he mutters an incantation under his breath. His eyes glow as he uses his magic to see further into the cave.

When the glow of magic fades from his eyes, he blinks and looks behind him at Morgana. "There's a presence ahead, but I can't see what it is... it's distorted somehow."

They venture deeper into the darkness, Merlin's ball of light floating just inches in front of them. Just as Merlin crosses past a few boulders, something above them stirs, and Merlin looks up to find hundreds of bats begin to drop from their place in the ceiling. He quickly turns, pulling Morgana against his chest as the winged mammals disperse above and all around them. Morgana screams, causing more of the bats to take flight out of the cave.

When the area is clear, Merlin releases a breath of relief as he pulls back to look at Morgana with concern. "Are you okay?" He asks worriedly.

Morgana looks up at the ceiling and nods her head. "Yes... I just wasn't expecting that."

Merlin hears yet another thud and he turns in time to see something move in the shadows beyond them. The ball of light follows, and so does he and Morgana.

He picks up the pace, holding his hand up in front of him at the ready. He feels Morgana's hand tighten around his as they venture deeper into the cave.

It's the sound of scuffling feet that makes him stop again, but this time, he can see what the sound is coming from. Just up ahead, he sees a pack of wilddeoren coming straight towards them. There are five or six of them. They're too close, and knowing that they don't have time to hide, Merlin releases Morgana's hand and with all his might, uses his magic to stop the creatures from getting to them. However, he did a little more than that.

Morgana gasps as the giant, disgusting rats practically disintegrate in front of them. Merlin looks at her and shakes his head. "I only meant to push them away. I didn't think they'd disintegrate."

Morgana blinks at him in confusion. "Why are you explaining? I'm not complaining. They would've eaten us, from the looks of it."

"Right." Merlin nods and gestures for her to follow him again. A shadow passes ahead, and Merlin runs after it, causing Morgana to run as well.

Just as he rounds the corner, he's met with a ghastly looking beast. One that he'd never seen before in real life, but he recognizes from one of Gaius' books.

"What is that thing?!" Morgana asks fearfully as the creatures growls at them.

"An Afanc." Merlin backs up, taking Morgana with him as the creature begins to slowly approach them.

"What do we do?"

"I'm not sure." Merlin's mind races back to what he'd read in Gaius' book, and he loudly recites the only thing he remembers. "It's conjured with elemental magic."

Morgana grips Merlin's shoulder as he backs them right against a wall. "Elemental?"

Merlin nods as the creature gets closer and closer. "Yes. From earth and water."

"That's only two of the four base elements." Morgana points out. "Perhaps fire and air will kill it?"

Merlin turns his head abruptly and looks at Morgana in amazement. "That makes sense." He grins widely. "That's a really good—".

"Merlin, perhaps we could discuss this after we kill it?" She points in front of him to the Afanc as it's now only a few feet away.

"Right." Merlin turns, raising his hand in front of him. The ball of light that illuminated their way disappears for a second, only to be replaced by a ball of fire at the word, " _Forebearne"_. The creature suddenly rears back, letting out a loud roar of anger and fear.

Merlin leans forward, muttering a spell under his breath. " _Lyfte sy þe in bǽlwylm ac forhienan se wiðere_!"

The ball of fire explodes towards the creature as air filters from its surroundings to wrap around it. It screeches loudly, swinging its arms back and forth as the fire consumes and disintegrates it, instantly turning it into a pile of ash.

Morgana slumps forward against Merlin's back, feeling as though she'd been the one to fight the monster. "I didn't do a thing, but I'm suddenly exhausted." She murmurs against his tunic.

Merlin grins and turns to look at her. "Nonsense. You figured out how to kill it."

Morgana rolls her eyes. "I figured out that two of the elements weren't used to create it."

Merlin sighs and takes her hand. "You gave me strength to defeat it."

She couldn't help but smile. "Watching you defeat it was kind of alluring."

The sound of rumbling rocks stops Merlin from saying what he'd wanted to say.

Merlin and Morgana both turn their heads towards the sound, to find the ground under the ash-Afanc begin to crumble and rise into something akin to an anthill.

"What the bloody hell now?" Merlin says loudly as he moves to stand in front of Morgana once again.

The very top of the mound begins to crumble away, revealing hundreds and hundreds of beetles, crawling out of it and towards them.

Morgana lets out a loud groan. "It just had to be beetles."

Merlin sends the floating ball of fire towards the little critters, turning them to dust, but they continue to flow out of the ground like water from a fountain. "There's too many." Merlin says in a slight panic.

Morgana looks around, trying to find another passageway or something they could take. There's no way they'll be able to get past the bugs from hell. That's when she notices something coming from the other end of the cave. Coming from where they came, and faster than anything she had ever seen. She didn't even have time to alert Merlin before it jumps out at them. She screams at the top of her lungs, causing Merlin to instinctively turn and pull her against him as he turns them both.

She doesn't know what happened. One moment she's in Merlin's arms, momentarily safe from harm, and the next, she's standing alone in the dark. Morgana turns around, eyes searching for anything, but she couldn't see a single thing. Raising her hand, she tries to get a look at it, but she can't see a thing. There are no sounds, no crawling beetles, no tiny evil creature, and absolutely no light. She couldn't even see her hand in front of her face! Fear begins to set in as she whispers into the darkness. "Merlin?"

No answer.

"Merlin?" She tries again,and still no answer. On the third "Merlin?", she takes a step forward, but her foot catches on something and she ends up falling forward, landing on top of something that felt vaguely like a body. She hopes and prays to all the gods that it's Merlin, alive. She grunts as she pushes herself up on her knees and uses her hands to feel around in front of her.

It doesn't take her long to figure out that the body is indeed Merlin's. She sighs in relief when she feels the rise and fall of his chest, which is the part of him that she'd ended up falling diagonally across.

Taking deep breaths, she tries to calm herself and think of something. Now that Merlin is unconscious, there's no one to keep the ball of light or fire up to illuminate the cave. She has no idea what happened to the beetles and the thing that attacked her Merlin, but she's glad they're not there. Without light, she won't be able to see where Merlin is hurt. She only hopes that it'll be something she can fix.

She has no idea what to do. She has no torch. All she has is a dagger. Merlin has his magic, but he's unconscious. She tries shaking him awake as she repeatedly calls his name, but she gets nothing but the gentle puffs of his breath as he breathes. She closes her eyes once more, breathing in deeply. The only chance she has, is Merlin's magic... _magic_.

Morgana opens her eyes. It's no different from having them closed; it's so pitch black. Magic. Her mother had said she was special like Morgause. She has magic. She remembers the spell Merlin had used to create the fire. "Okay... I can do this." Shaking her hands in front of her, she prepares her mind. It shouldn't be much different from focusing on sword fighting. Just focus.

Closing her eyes once more, Morgana begins to mutter the spell. "Forbearne." She opens her eyes to find darkness again. She tries again, this time really focusing on the image of fire. Burning, hot, red, orange, yellow, flames. She focuses on the warmth, the power. " _Forbearne_." She confidently commands. She feels it, the rush and the tingling in her chest. _Magic_.

She feels it before she sees it, grow into a small ball. It's much smaller than the one Merlin conjured, but it's good enough for now. Morgana blinks as she immediately looks at Merlin. He's definitely unconscious, eyes closed, and skin surprisingly paler than ever. Morgana frantically looks around for open or obvious wounds, finding none. She goes to sit him up so she can check his back, but that's when she notices a tiny speck of blood on his neck, surrounded by a faint bruise.

She stops and leans towards him, inspecting it. Wiping the speck of blood away reveals a tiny hole behind it. She checks his pulse, finding it faint. Worry begins to rise up in her chest as she tries to think of what to do. He's much too heavy for her to carry back out of the cave, and she simply cannot leave him here by himself.

Morgana raises her head, looking around for something that could give her an idea, and that's when she notices something odd. The beetle hill was gone, and so were the ashes of the Afanc. And it wasn't just gone. It looked like it had never been there. The ground is completely solid, no large beetle holes or anything anywhere.

Looking back down at Merlin, Morgana begins to suspect something, but she's not sure. There's only one way to find out. Morgana looks down at Merlin and places her hand over his chest. She closes her eyes, focusing on waking him up. She pictures him in her minds eye, sitting up, opening his blue eyes, inhaling deeply. She pictures him looking at her. She imagines the feel of his arms around her. "Come on, Merlin." She whispers. "Wake up."

" _WAKE UP!"_

Merlin gasps as his eyes snap open. He first sees Morgana, and then he sees the fire in her open palm. He sits up, then notices the humming sound of scuffling.

"Merlin!" Morgana pulls him up, but he suddenly wobbles, loses his footing and goes right back down. "What the—!". Morgana screams as beetles spew back out of the suddenly open ground again, crawling their way towards Merlin.

Merlin hears another sound and looks up right in time to see something vaguely familiar coming right _at_ him. He's much too weak to even raise his hand. He's lightheaded and feels like throwing up before taking a long nap.

Morgana, seeing the creature that attacked Merlin coming right back at her beloved, thinks on her feet and unsheathes her dagger. It lunges towards Merlin while she lunges towards it, impaling it right in the neck just in time. It lets out a high-pitched shriek before it begins to convulse and turn into ash.

Merlin gasps a second time as a shot of pure adrenaline shoots through his body. He snaps up into a sitting position, suddenly feeling a hundred times better than a moment ago. "Forbearne!" He shouts as he thrusts his hand forward and disintegrates the beetles. The whole lot.

Morgana drops to her knees beside him and lets out a long sigh of relief.

Merlin looks at her and asks, "What happened?"

Morgana shakes her head at him and swallows. "The creatures... I think their life-force is connected to you."

Merlin blinks confusedly at her. "What do you mean?"

"When you were attacked by that— thing—".

"It was a manticore... deadly magical creature."

Morgana nods. "Yes. You passed out and the creatures disappeared."

Merlin's eyebrows knit together as he gets up and helps Morgana stand as well. "Disappeared?"

Morgana nods. "Yes... they were just— gone."

"It could've just been the dark."

Morgana shakes her head. "No. When I was able to get a small ball of fire to light the darkness, I noticed that the ground where the beetles came out of was back to being smooth. The hill and the hole was gone. So were the Afanc's ashes, and so was that ugly thing that attacked you... and as soon as you regained consciousness, the beetles and the other creature just reappeared like they never left. And when I killed the thing, you regained your strength immediately."

Merlin shakes his head. "The other parts don't make sense. As for me regaining strength when you killed the manticore, it's because killing it is the only cure for its venom."

Morgana lets out a shaky breath. "It's bloody good thing you gave this dagger then." She says as she puts it back in its sheath.

Merlin nods, then smiles at her. He creates his own ball of fire when Morgana's flickers out. "You used magic." He points out in an impressed tone.

Morgana widens her eyes at him. "I did! Oh my gods, I panicked when you passed out, and I just— I used the spell you used to command fire."

Merlin's smile widens. "I suspect you're just like me... I didn't need to learn magic to use it. It was just there from the moment I was born."

"I don't know. I've never felt it before. The rush of power."

Merlin pulls her into his embrace. "And yet it's there... you _saved_ me."

Morgana smiles, opening her mouth to reply, but getting cut off by a horrendous and spine chilling scream. They break apart, looking down the dark cave.

"And it's back to fighting evil." Merlin murmurs.

...

Arthur, Gwen, and Uther has to take a secret passageway out the back of the castle after discovering that the front entrance is completely sealed off with rubble from the main towers remains.

Arthur hopes that Gaius and the Princess Ophelia have made it safely out to the city. He's still unsure of the current status there, but it can't be worse than inside what's left of the castle.

He looks at his father and Gwen for a moment, checking that they're both looking strong enough to continue, and that's when he hears the sound of multiple footfalls coming towards them. They all stop, waiting with bated breath as Arthur's hand goes to the sword at his hip.

The three let out simultaneous sighs of relief when they see the King of Ergyng emerge with about 7 of his men, plus Gaius and Princess Ophelia.

"King Athrwys!" Arthur calls out.

The King looks around beside and behind them. "Where are the others? The Knights?" He asks.

Arthur shakes his head warily. "Last I heard, they're in the city."

King Athrwys nods in thought before he holds up a small, rolled up piece of paper. "We received word from my army. They managed to find a shortcut across the Forest of Ascetir, and should be arriving by dawn. We just have to hold off the dragon and the invisible creatures until then."

Arthur nods as some of King Athrwys' men helps his father towards the fort they'd built against the wall behind the castle. Arthur takes Gwen over to Gaius and asks if he could take a look at Gwen's wound before checking on his father's. He trusts that Gwen did a good enough job on his father's wound. No one has looked at her wound though, and he wants to make sure it's not in any danger of infection.

As Gaius tends to Gwen and Uther with Princess Ophelia's help, Arthur takes the time to speak with the King of Ergyng about a battle plan.

King Athrwys shakes his head as they gather around a table. "There's not much to begin with. My daughter has filled me in on the evil sorceress taking on the body of the dragon that's currently wreaking havoc on the castle. My men can fight off the invisible creatures, using Merlin's methods. We managed to find a way to use the oil and a catapult to launch it into the air. But there's only so much oil left in stock. I'm afraid that once it runs out, we'll be sitting ducks." He sighs and looks up at the back of the castle. "As for the dragon, I'm afraid my army won't be a match for it. I've read about them. Their armor— the scales on its body, is very much impenetrable. I'm not sure we'll be able to defeat it."

Arthur shakes his head and looks at the King with a hopeful look in his eyes. "The dragon won't be a problem."

King Athrwys blinks at the young Prince. "How do you figure?"

Arthur smiles a little. "Merlin... he'll find a way to defeat it. Or at least, he'll find a way to defeat the sorceress inside it. The real dragon is apparently a friend of his."

The King smiles at that. "Merlin and his magic has proven to be more beneficial for this Kingdom than not." He looks over at the King of Camelot. "When this is over, I hope your father will see it that way."

Arthur turns and looks at his father as he nods. "Me too."

Screeches from a short distance away pulls the two from their conversation. King Athrwys draws his sword and looks at Arthur. "More of the invisible creatures are on the way."

Arthur draws his own sword and nods. "Is there no end to them?"

King Athrwys shakes his head. "They come in waves... as if the sorceress had commanded them to do so. It's been like this since the moment the dragon arrived."

Arthur makes his way over to Gaius, Gwen, the Princess, and his father. He gets them under cover and pleads for them to stay out of the fight. Gwen begins to protest, saying that she can help, but he was having none of it. "No. You've helped plenty, Gwen." He smiles at her and raises a hand to touch her cheek. "Now it's my turn to do my part." In front of the party from Ergyng, Gaius, and even his father, Arthur pulls her towards him and without a moment of hesitation, he places a quick kiss to her lips. "Stay here." He whispers, before walking off towards King Athrwys and his men.

...

Merlin and Morgana find themself face to face with a dead end. Merlin backtracks several yards, trying to find a fork that they'd maybe missed, but he finds none. When he makes his way back, he finds Morgana touching the end of the cavern.

"What is it?" He asks curiously.

Morgana shakes her head. "I'm not sure... there's like— a hum in the wall."

"A hum?" Merlin asks as he approaches it and puts his hand against it. Almost immediately, he feels it. It's subtle enough that it would've taken him several moments to feel it if Morgana hadn't told him about it. But it's strong enough that it's unmistakable. He pushes his hand against the dirt, feeling it's dampness. He rubs his fingers together as he remembers what Kilgharrah had said about the sound of water coming from somewhere near him. "It's wet." He mumbles. "The wall— there's water coming from somewhere behind it." _We're close_.

Taking a step back, he looks at Morgana and tells her to get back.

Morgana does so and looks questioningly at him. "What is it?"

Merlin looks at her with a look of hope in his eyes. "I think this is where their bodies are... everyone who died in the Great Purge." He looks at the wall. "Our _kin_." He closes his eyes and tries to focus on what's on the other side of the wall. The presence of souls. "I can feel them."

Morgana looks at the wall as she closes her eyes and focuses on what Merlin is feeling. It's not long before she feels it too. Like countless restless souls trying to find their way out. An overwhelming sadness and sorrow fills her heart as tears quickly collect in her eyes. She looks at Merlin. "Uther did this... he— he killed all these people and had their bodies discarded here." She shakes her head. "I can't blame them for wanting to see Uther's downfall." She says honestly.

Merlin takes her hand and offers a small comforting look. "I know... but their anger and sorrow is hurting more than just Uther."

Morgana sighs and swipes at her tears. She doesn't want to discuss Uther anymore. That's something she'll have to deal with later. For now, she just wants to get this over with so they can get out of there. "I'm assuming Nimueh's body is in there somewhere."

Merlin nods. "If we find where the water is coming from, we can find her body and the Stone of Mortem near it."

Morgana takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "How do we get to them?"

Merlin looks up at the wall again. "It's dangerous, but— The only way is through."

Morgana nods as she squeezes Merlin's hand. "We'll probably need the Stone Morgause gave us earlier." She tells him.

Merlin smiles and holds up his other hand. The stone sits in his palm as he nods. "Way ahead of you."

...

A/N: Okay, so I wanted this chapter to be a little bit longer, but I think I've made you all wait too long. So I'll write out the rest of it later and post it as a separate chapter. Hope you all like this chapter! I'll update as soon as possible. Thanks for reading!

-McDiggin'It


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